


Do As You Please

by TwistedTippy



Series: Forever [2]
Category: InuYasha - A Feudal Fairy Tale
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-20
Updated: 2020-09-20
Packaged: 2021-03-06 17:40:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 31,583
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26002786
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TwistedTippy/pseuds/TwistedTippy
Summary: "Do as you please." Sesshomaru was always so nonchalant, but sometimes you want a definitive answer. Sometimes you're just a human girl, standing in front of a Yokai, asking him to...give you a real answer.Adventure, Action, Flirting! Fight scenes. A possible male interest for Rin that Sesshomaru will have to do something about. A magic necklace for Rins protection (or is it?). Kohaku's glow-up made me decide to turn him into a 'ho. All that and more as Rin trains at Kohaku's Exterminator Camp.This is part of a SERIES:Part1 Rin growing up in Kaede's village. "Whatever You Chose"Part2 Rin learning how to kick-butt in Kohaku's Camp. "Do As You Please"Part3 Rin and Sesshomaru finally together, fighting side-by-side. "As You Wish"Eventually Sess/Rin smut... warnings will be in place at that time. Rin will be age appropriate, so no haters please.
Relationships: Rin/Sesshoumaru (InuYasha)
Series: Forever [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1875751
Comments: 53
Kudos: 87





	1. Camp

**Author's Note:**

> *Please accept the Canadian spelling of words such as "colour". We like "u's".  
> *Kaede's village/Inuyasha's village are obviously the same place, but since the village doesn't have an official name, and some characters don't know Inuyasha or don't know Kaede, I go back and forth between the two names depending on who's talking or in thought.   
> *There's some mature themes maybe? What is "mature" these days? No actual explicit content (yet!).   
> **Due to Kohaku's GlowUp, I've decided to turn him into a 'ho. It's the hot Kohaku we deserve people! -But also fair warning if you still harbour innocent feelings for him.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rin arrives at Koahku's exterminator camp to begin training to become a better fighter for her Lord.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rin is 15/16 in this chapter.  
> Japanese words translated in the end notes.

"Do as you please." was all Sesshomaru said. 

A series of follow-up questions and comments ran through Rin's mind, but she knew it was pointless to voice any of them. Sesshomaru was a Yokai of few words, if he wanted to say more about it, he would. 

Over the years, Rin had become used to reading Sesshomaru's micro-expressions, subtle gestures and tone of voice. However, she had hoped for a bit more of a response this time and wasn't really sure what to make of the one she observed. It was a 'yes' in a way. But not a 'Yes Rin, that is a good idea'. Or a 'Yes, you are wise to make that decision'. It was a nonchalant 'Sure, whatever you want Rin'. There was probably a revealing hint in his tone, but Rin was too disappointed to hear it. There was also something in his body language she wasn't sure how to interpret but she knew she would be spending the next few days analyzing it. It was almost a slump of his shoulders. He had tensed slightly, but not in his angry way or his irritated way.

Was he upset that she decided to leave Kaede's village? Was he upset that she didn't want to rejoin him yet? Was he upset that she wanted to go training at Kohaku's exterminator camp? Was it the training, fighting and her safety that he was worried about? Or being around Kohaku? Or not being around Inuyasha and his protection? Sesshomaru was so frustrating sometimes.

Rin sighed heavily and leaned against Sesshomaru. They were sitting beside each other under the old tree watching the world go by, as they often did when he came to visit. This would be the last time. 

They sat there together, silently, until Jaken arrived with Ah-Un. Jaken began talking, but Sesshomaru ignored him and turned to Rin. "When will you relocate?"

Rin was slightly taken aback by the sudden question. She didn't really have a plan. She had floated the idea past Kohaku the last time he visited Sango, and wasn't sure if she would be accepted. And she still had to tell everyone else. But she wanted to see how Sesshomaru felt about it first. She had no idea how he felt about it even now, but obviously he was ok with it on some level.

"In a few days." Rin decided. 

Sesshomaru slightly nodded to her then began to walk away towards the woods. 

"Goodbye Lord Sesshomaru." Rin felt tears welling up behind her eyes. He would come visit her there right?

"Relocating?" Jaken's voice cut into Rin's thoughts.

"Yes Master Jaken. I'm going to train at Kohaku's exterminator camp."

"The Yokai exterminators?!" Jaken began freaking out, over dramatic as always. "But why? Do you want to kill Lord Sesshomaru?!"

"No, of course not! I want to learn how to fight, so I can stay by his side." Rin looked up and watched as Sesshomaru disappeared into the woods.

"From Yokai exterminators? But-"

"You better hurry Master Jaken. You know Lord Sesshomaru won't wait for you."

"But-" Jaken looked in the direction Sesshomaru had begun walking. He couldn't see him at all, only a glimpse of Ah-Uns tail disappearing in the woods. "Wait for me My Lord!" 

A few days ago Kagome had thrown Rin a small coming of age celebration. Not a proper Genpuku, but the whole gang gathered for a meal and Rin got to cheers everyone and try her first sip of sake. She was not a fan.

She was 15 now, an adult who could make her own decisions. Kagome had asked if she would leave the village with Sesshomaru now. Rin confessed to Kagome when they were alone that she wanted to go back with Sesshomaru more than anything. But she knew she wasn't ready. She wanted to fight along side him, not have to always hide behind a rock or Jaken. 

"Even though Sango and I can fight, we still need help from the guys sometimes." Kagome admitted.

"Yes, but not always. You can handle yourselves. I'm not very good yet. You and Sango have shown me a bit, but you're both busy with other things. I want to really learn how to fight. I want to go train with Kohaku." 

Rin fidgeted with her hair, still staring at the spot Sesshomaru had left from. "Do as you please." Rin mocked Sesshomaru's words. For a moment she wanted to scream. "What does that even mean!" She took a deep breath, then walked back to the village. 

Rin left the next day. She had told Sesshomaru she would leave in a few days, but she didn't sleep all night and was filled with a desire to just get it over with already. Sesshomaru had left her feeling empty and without any closure on the matter. It made her angry and determined. Did he think she couldn't do the training? She was going to show him! 

She was wearing a new Kimono she'd sown from the last fabric Sesshomaru had brought her and a mobakama that Kagome and Sango gave her a few days ago. The Kimono was red and white, much like Sesshomaru's, but with no pattern except the chunky stripes. The mobakama was an indigo blue. She had a Furoshiki bundled with a few of her possessions and some food. She had a small knife strapped to her ankle, and her wooden water bottle tied loosely around her hip. 

Rin said goodbye to everyone, she promised she would be back to visit soon. She had wanted to make the journey by herself but Inuyasha wouldn't let her. They set off at a walking pace, hoping to make it to the camp by the next afternoon.

\--------------------------------

Kohaku happily welcomed Rin into his exterminator camp. He would take all the trainees he could, and he always liked Rin. The camp was rebuilt swiftly and had been growing in numbers the last couple years. But when you fought Yokai for a living, casualties happened. 

Due to his lineage, Kohaku was the lead of the camp, but he had exterminators who were older than him and more skilled. Regardless, Kohaku was respected as the leader and had grown into the role well. Rid admired the way he walked around the camp and everyone greeted him with respect. Rin had always shown Kohaku respect as someone older than her and who knew how to fight, but she was happy to see him being a commander. 

Kohaku's camp was quite large and currently held approximately 50 people in total, including civilians. A large fence stood tall, encompassing the camp, with a big front gate with a watch tower and a small back gate. There were several small huts used to house people at night, and one large main building for cooking, gathering, and eating. There was a building used as an indoor training facility during the rainy or colder months, a storage shed with a big elevated barrel a few paces behind it for bathing, and a weapons storage & forge. There were several areas for training around the camp and a worn track following along the fence. 

The camp was laid out clearly enough that Rin didn't need a tour, but Kohaku pointed out areas of the grounds and groups of exterminators who were training together. He then brought her to the huddled group of newest recruits.

Kohaku patted the back of a towering man addressing the trainees. "This is Dosan, he's my right hand man. He'll start your training with some of the others."

The older man turned around, he had broad shoulders and a shaved head. He bowed slightly and regarded Rin.

Rin mirrored the bow. "Sensei." 

"This is Rin." Kohaku said. "She's going to join you in a few minutes." 

Kohaku led Rin to the sleeping huts and went inside a hut that had "Water - Rabbit" etched above the entryway. The hut looked like it had been ransacked. A sleeping mat was bunched in one corner, a blanket was half on the raised wooden platform and half on the ground, there was a tipped over cooking pot beside the fire, zabuton on the dirt and kimonos spilling out of shoji cupboards on the side wall. 

Kohaku sighed. "You'll be sharing the hut with Otsuya. She's a bit messy and still lacks discipline." Kohaku picked up some things and tossed them to one side. He gestured to the clean side for Rin. "I'll get someone to bring you a sleeping mat and linen. For now you can put your stuff here. Otsuya will be training with you today so you can let her know the uh...good news." 

Rin placed her furoshiki down on the wooden platform of the hut. She didn't bring much. Kaede was kind enough to let her leave her nice kimonos at her place. Rin only brought the clothes she was wearing, one cotton kimono, her comb, a writing brush, some paper, and ink chunks to be ground.

Kohaku handed her a set of clothes to change into. Rin took them and bowed. "Thank you Kohaku." Rin quickly looked over the basic white kimono, hakama, and boots.

Kohaku's eyes roamed over Rin, impressed with how she'd grown up, but she didn't notice. "Join Dosan when you're done. I'll see you at sundown."

With Kohaku gone, Rin took another look around the small messy hut. She hoped this Otsuya woman was nice. 

After changing, Rin found her way back to Dosan. He had 5 trainees with him, sparing with bamboo Shinai. 

"Rin." Dosan looked her over in deep thought. "I hope you already know how to fight. I'm getting tired of these green trainees."

Rin frowned. "I know some things." She said innocently. "I've trained a bit with a naginata and a bow." 

Dosan also frowned. "You're small, we need to beef you up a bit. Here." Dosan handed her a red oak Bokuto. "Otsuya." 

Otsuya came over. She was a bit taller and older than Rin and judging by her muscle tone it looked like she'd been training for a while. Otsuya pointed her shinai at Rin, "Let's see what'cha got."

Rin was suddenly nervous. Dosan and the other trainees were staring at her. Rin double gripped her bokuto, it was heavy in her hands. She took a breath, then charged and batted at Otsuya. Otsuya easily dodged, then swung her weapon around to hit the back of Rins ankles and trip her. Rin fell flat on her back causing Otsuya to let out a cackle. 

Dosan gave Rin a hand back onto her feet. "Again."

Rin shook it off and charged Otsuya. Rin batted again, Otsuya dodged and went to swing at Rin's ankles again. Rin bent her knee and slid forward in a crouch, passing Otsuya and slapping her legs with her bokuto. The slap didn't cause Otsuya to fall and wasn't hard enough to hurt her, but it was a decent move. Otsuya twirled around and jabbed the end of her shinai in Rins face, but didn't hit her. 

"You learn, that's good." Dosan nodded. "Everyone keep at it." Dosan left Rin and Otsuya and went to another pair. There was one other female in training, Akiko, who appeared about 13 but had a fierce face and aggression to match. The other four were males who varied in age and size; Yoshikazu, Kamakura, Ashikaga, and Azuchi.

Rin stood up and smiled at Otsuya. "I'm Rin."

"I know." Otsuya took an aggressive stance, ready to go again.

Rin held her bokuto back up. "We're going to be hut mates." 

"What?" Otsuya lowered her weapon, irritated by the news.

"Yes." Rin smiled, trying to make a new friend, but clearly it was going to be harder than she thought.

Otsuya did not look pleased, she had been enjoying the freedom of her own hut. She charged at Rin. Rin was taken by surprise at the fast attack and closed her eyes, but managed to block and hold her ground.

"What are you doing?" Otsuya pushed Rin back a bit. "Open your eyes! Are you trying to get hurt?"

Rin opened her eyes and smiled at Otsuya, glad she didn't take her mistake to hit her. "I'm sorry. I've never really been in a fight before. I'm nervous."

"Then what are you doing here?" Otsuya backed off and began twirling her shinai around in her hand.

"I want to learn. I've been around strong fighters most of my life. I've practiced by myself, but never against anyone. I want to be a good fighter."

Otsuya tilted her head. "You've got a long way to go. Rule one- Keep your eyes open." Otsuya charged again. Rin blocked again. Otsuya started making a growl noise and began pushing Rin backwards.

Rin tried to think of what her next move should be. What would Sesshomaru do? She wasn't strong enough to push Otsuya back. She could quickly side step, but then Otsuya might fall forward and Rin didn't want her to get hurt. She realized that was naive, if Otsuya really was an enemy, the goal would be to hurt her. She couldn't slide her bokuto out, Otsuya's push and hands were preventing her from making an easy slide. Rin did that fastest thing she could think to do. She let go of the bokuto with one hand and smacked Otsuya square in the face. 

Otsuya dropped both weapons and stepped back her hand on her face. "What the hell?!"

Rin took a step back as well and lowered her arms. "Sorry." She said softly.

"You don't slap someone in the face! What's wrong with you?! We were practicing a sword fight. Sword!" Otsuya took her hands off her face and glared at Rin.

Rin took another careful step back, scared. 

Otsuya didn't charge her for a fist fight like Rin thought she might, instead she suddenly broke out into laughter.

Rin sighed and laughed too.

Otsuya picked up both weapons and tossed the bokuto to Rin. "Two- No face smacking." Otsuya held up her shinai. 

At dinner that first evening, Rin met the rest of the women in the camp. She was tired and sore from being hit by Otsuya all afternoon and was eager for a meal. It was simple, rice with a few small chunks of pork, but it tasted so good to her tired hungry self.

Rin sat in a circle with Otsuya and met the others. Serina and Suzuna were Ninja's from a destroyed clan in the south. They had met Sango long ago and joined the camp to train with Kohaku and also share their ninja skills with the exterminators. Akiko, Tomiko, and Kicho were from different villages who had come to train after watching their families and homes be decimated by various Yokai. 

Shiori, the bat-hanyo, was also in the camp. Rin was surprised to see a Hanyo in the camp. Kaede's village had a few Hanyo and Yokai who trained with each other or with Inuyasha, but she didn't expect one to be in a Yokai exterminators camp. Shiori explained that she had gone to Inuyasha's village with her mother to live, but Inuyasha and Kohaku happened to run into her on the outskirts of the village and convince her to help the exterminator camp instead. Shiori created and maintained a barrier for the camp, while her mother Shizu helped with the cooking and cleaning. Shiori also did some training, but always by herself instead of the group since she was shy and not all the exterminators were happy about a Hanyo being in the camp. Most were okay with Yokai and Hanyo as long as they were peaceful, but some held grudges for lost loved ones. 

Rin looked over at the groups of men eating. There was certainly more men than women. Rin was straining her neck, trying to find Kohaku.

"Who are you looking for?" Tomiko asked. 

"Kohaku." Rin said.

"Why?" Tomiko was curious.

"He usually eats by himself later. He's probably still training or just doing his own thing." Kicho offered.

"Or doing _someone_." Otsuya teased.

The young women giggled but the comment went over Rin's head. She just wanted to talk with Kohaku. It was a trying day and she craved a familiar face.

Eventually Kohaku appeared by a training post just behind the bulk of the men eating. Rin saw Dosan go talk to him, offering him a cup of sake.

"Do you and Kohaku have history or something?" Otsuya raised an eyebrow.

"Yes." Rin didn't offer more information, she didn't know what to say of their history really. Kohaku held her captive against both their wills. Kohaku joined her in following Lord Sesshomaru. Kohaku protected her. Rin thought of them as friends. As soon as Dosan left Kohaku's side, Rin got up and went to him. 

"Fitting in okay?" Kohaku asked and nodded to the group Rin had just left.

"Yes." Rin looked back at the group of women, they were all staring at her and Kohaku. 

"Otsuya can be intimidating and controlling sometimes, don't let her get to you." Kohaku was staring at Otsuya with a coy smile. He then put his arm around Rin's shoulder and pulled her away from the people eating. 

Rin felt a bit shy from the sudden contact. "Don't you want to eat?" Rin wondered where they were going, it was warmer near the fires and huddled people. 

"Not what's over there." Kohaku grinned. He didn't lead them far, just to the side of the main building, out of view of everyone else. 

Rin shrugged herself out of Kohaku's arm and took a few steps away from him, looking up at the night sky. "There's a waning moon tonight, just like Lord Sesshomaru's markings." Rin smiled. 

Kohaku sobered at the mention of Sesshomaru. "Does Lord Sesshomaru still visit you?"

"Yes, of course." Rin answered quickly. "I told him I was moving here. He may come visit at some point. I hope that's alright."

Kohaku thought about the implications of the DaiYoaki visiting the camp. "We'll figure something out."

"Has he been here? I hope no one has tried to attack him."

"He's never been here but I'm sure he knows where it is." Kohaku leaned back against the wall. "I've passed him a couple times in my travels and he let me spar with him. I'm glad he still visits you, hopefully he'll be merciful to my camp."

Rin laughed. "Of course he will. He's very nice."

Kohaku smiled, he hadn't heard Rin laugh in a long time and he forgot what a nice sound it was. "We'll see."

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything." Otsuya suddenly appeared at the corner. She stared from Kohaku and Rin.

Kohaku rolled his eyes. "We're just catching up and talking about a mutual friend of ours.""History huh?" Otsuya moved beside Kohaku and leaned her back on the wall. She stared up at him trying to give an expression of cute curiosity instead of jealousy. "Yah, Rin and I knew each other when we were kids." Kohaku took one last look at the moon, and Rin, then rolled to his side to stare at Otsuya. "Oh, childhood friends." Otsuya relaxed. Kohaku put his hand beside Otsuya's head and stared deep into her eyes."I think I'm going to go to bed." Rin said with a yawn. "Otsuya, will you come with me?"Otsuya looked at Rin then back to Kohaku. "No, I'm going to stay and... _chat_ with Kohaku for a few minutes." She grinned wickedly at Koahku. 

"Okay. Goodnight." Rin rounded the corner back towards the people eating, she didn't notice Kohaku and Otsuya pounce on each other.

Training varied from day to day. With Dossan they sparred with Shinai, and sometimes they trained with Naginatas. They did bow training and Rin was eager to improve her aim. Suzana taught them how to use shuriken, grenades, and kusarigama. Serina taught them scouting, painting & camouflage, and the Tessan. They also had days where they just ran. They'd run over things, under things, dodge things thrown at them, climb rocks, and climb ropes. Rin hated those days. She thought she had good endurance from traveling with Sesshomaru, but that was a couple years ago now and that was mostly walking, not running. 

Rin caught sight of Kohaku and his lead team training when she took a quick break from running to catch her breath. She had been doing laps around the camp all morning with her group and it was nearly mid day. Rin heard fighting in the brush not far from where she stopped so she went closer. Dosan she'd met, but the others Rin had only seen and heard about around the fire at night. Kamikura was around Kohakus age, he was big and muscular like Dosan. Hidekatsu was older like Dosan but small and toned. Nobuhiro was probably the oldest. He had white hair and a pointy beard. Kohaku and Dosan were using Kusarigama to hit targets up in the trees. Kamikura and Hidekatsu were attacking each other with Tsukubo. Nobuhiro had a katana, tanto, and several kunai strapped to him. He had his eyes closed possibly in meditation. Rin watched them for a moment, wondering if she'd ever get that good or get to train with weapons like that. She was enjoying watching until Nobuhiro opened his eyes and looked in her direction. Rin quickly hid behind a tree. She waited a few minutes then ran to re-join her group. 

\--------------------------------

A month passed at the camp before Sesshomaru came to visit Rin at the exterminator camp. 

"YOKAI!" Someone shouted and rang the watchtower bell. Although the camp contained many rookies and civilians, the entire camp came out to the sound of the bell, weapons at the ready. It was part of their training to be ready to fight at a moment's notice. Defend the camp, work together. But it was all for show. Shiori's barrier prevented Yokai from getting in. Kohaku and a handful of the trained exterminators went to the gate to assess the threat. Then they would go do their job while everyone else would watch and stay in their positions, just in case. The really new recruits like Rin were at the back and couldn't even see the action.

Rin had a bow in her hand. She didn't have great aim or strength yet, but she'd been practicing and was better. This was the third attack on the camp since she arrived, but she hadn't had to use the bow on a Yokai yet. 

"Three Yokai." The tower man shouted down to Kohaku. "A tall humanoid, and a small one on a dragon."

Kohaku climbed the tower to have a look, he grinned at who he saw. "Open the gate."

Two men began pulling the gate open.

"Close the Gate!" the tower mad suddenly said in a panic. "He's walking right through the barrier!!"

Panic spread through the camp, a Yokai wasn't supposed to be able to get through the barrier. Shiori was hidden in the main building for safety and trying to strengthen the barrier. The front gate was dropped back down as people backed away from the gate.

Those near Rin had no idea what was going on, except that there was panic. A big Yokai must be nearing the barrier.

"Open the gate!" Kohaku repeated calmly but sternly. No one listened. Kohaku jumped down to the ground and tried to open the gate himself, but you needed two people. Before he could force someone to help him, the gate blew open from an outside force.

Before the dust from the impact settled, a few spears were thrown. Some people were shaking in panic. Rin was calm. Although she wasn't a great fighter, she'd been around enough powerful Yokai that she didn't fear the idea or anticipation of one.

"Everyone stand down." Kohaku shouted to his camp. They looked at him in surprise and confusion. Was he giving up?

"I will not give up so easily!" One of the men, Hidekatsu, shouted. "With me!" He raised his sword and charged out the gate at the Yokai, 3 others following.

"No! Stand down!' Kohaku shouted after them.

All 4 men were suddenly pushed back into the air with nothing but the Yokai's force. Hidekatsu ended up at the back beside Rin.

"Stand down damn it! All of you. Now." Kohaku got down on one knee and bowed his head. "Lord Sesshomaru, I apologize. They didn't know. Please, don't kill my people."

Sesshomaru stepped through the gate and looked around at the humans in the camp. "They're disobedient." Everyone was frozen in place, staring back at him, confused and scared.

Kohaku wavered. "Yes. We're working on it."

"Where is Rin at?" Sesshomaru sniffed at the air, she was here somewhere. He spotted her in the back.

Kohaku stood up and shouted Rin's name.

Rin could see Sesshomaru from where she stood. She was so happy to see him, but decided to have a little fun. She took off at a sprint towards him. When she got a few paces from them she tucked into a roll, ending up on her knees, aimed her bow, and fired at Sesshomaru. 

The arrow hit Sesshomaru in the middle of his armored chest. It didn't pierce his armor, didn't even scratch it. It bounced off and fell to the ground. Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes at Rin. Everyone held their breath, except Rin, who laughed. 

"Outside." Sesshomaru said, then walked out the gate. "Kohaku, you too."

The villagers were stunned as they watched Rin skip her way out the gate with Kohaku dejectedly following.

Sesshomaru stopped a few paces outside the barrier where Jaken and Ah-Un were waiting patiently. The barrier wasn't an issue for a DaiYokai like him, but it did send an irritating hum through him.

"You found me!" Rin beamed happily at Sesshomaru.

"Which made you want to shoot me?" Sesshomaru inquired. There was a very subtle hint in his voice that only Rin caught that let her know he was asking in jest.

"She what?!" Jaken started.

"My aim is getting better, I wanted to demonstrate." Rin tilted her head. "I'm learning other weapons too." She got out one of her arrows and began stabbing at the air as if it were a shinai.

Sesshomaru wanted to smile, but didn't. He turned to Kohaku, "Your defenses are insufficient."

Kohaku crossed his arms. "They're fine against normal Yokai."

"They're disobedient."

"No one's ever strolled through our barrier before. They panicked."

"Strolled?" Jaken wanted attention. "Lord Sesshomaru does not 'stroll'!"

"Perhaps they need a stronger leader." Sesshomaru did not necessarily want to scold Kohaku, but he could tell he needed a push from a stronger male than Miroku or Inuyasha.

Kohaku hesitated and clenched his fists. He knew he wasn't as great as his father was yet. But he was trying.

"They listen to him. " Rin offered. "He's a good leader and sensei."

"You're the strongest Yokai in this region." Kohaku tried to defend his camp. "No one else will get through like you just did."

"Maybe I should go in there," Jaken grabbed the Staff of Two Heads and marched towards the barrier. "And show them some skills." The barrier zapped, shocked and repelled Jaken. His hair and clothing sizzled. "Maybe later."

"My lead team has exterminated many Yokai." Kohaku stood tall. "Everyone else just needs more training. It takes time."

"Go. Train." Sesshomaru dismissed Kohaku and turned to Rin. 

Kohaku bowed his head out of respect, even though Sesshomaru had already turned away from him, then went back to the camp.

"Did you have trouble finding me, My Lord?" Rin asked.

"Lord Sesshomaru is an Inu-Yokai." Jaken had crawled his way back to Sesshomaru. "He can track your smell anywhere." 

Rin laughed and wondered what she smelt like, blushing slightly.

"Rin, come here." Sesshomaru sat down on the grass and pulled something out of his robe. 

Rin was excited, she sat down in front of him, knees nearly touching his. She wasn't a greedy person, she never expected Sesshomaru to bring her gifts, but he often did and it made her happy that he thought about her. The gifts varied; material for clothing, small objects she had expressed interest in like a shovel tool, a beautiful luminescent plant, and once tea leaves from The Continent. She didn't know what kinds of things he'd bring her in this new life.

Sesshomaru began unwrapping the small cloth in his hands and revealed a necklace with a small dark pearl. The pearl looked dark purple with white and black flecks in the middle.

Rin moved her face in closer to examine it. She could see swirling blue in the middle. It was mesmerizingly beautiful. Sesshomaru had never given her any type of jewelry before.

"It is a meidō pearl." Since her head was still practically on top of it, Sesshomaru took the opportunity to move his hands around Rins neck and fasten the necklace. 

Rin blushed and let out a small laugh, sitting back up straight, realizing how close she was. She moved her hand to the pearl so she could look at it some more. "Is it like your mothers?" Although most of her memories at Sesshomaru's mother's castle and in the underworld was lost to her, Rin did recall Jaken telling her about the events and the Meidōstone that brought her back to life. 

"It can only protect a life, not take it away or give one back. You must be strong and concentrate. With enough practice, it can create a barrier around you during battle."

"Thank you Lord Sesshomaru." Rin stared deeper into the pearl, it was the underworld she was looking at. Haunting and beautiful. The fact that it served a protective purpose, didn't tarnish the fact that it was a piece of jewelry he was giving her.

Rin gave into emotion and flung herself forward into Sesshomaru, wrapping her arms around him in a hug. Although they usually had minimal contact, Rin had observed how human women reacted to receiving jewelry and this was it. Or a kiss, but Rin knew that would be even more inappropriate. They often leaned against each other, and Sesshomaru often touched her face, but Rin counted those as normal interactions. Hugs were for special times and special people- or Yokai.

"Rin!" Jaken jumped to his feet. "You've been spending too much time with humans. Get off Lord Sesshomaru this instant!" He grabbed Rin to pull her away, but was slapped back by Sesshomaru who put his arm around Rin. 

Rin sat back up with rosy cheeks.

"Try to create a barrier." Sesshomaru had his happy face on for Rin. To most it looked like his normal stoic face, but there was a slight pull at his cheeks and hint of an upturn at the side of his lips.

Rin nodded and closed her eyes. She held the pearl on her palm and tried to concentrate. She wasn't really sure what to do, but focused on the object in her hand and thought about barriers.

"Think about the outer layer of the pearl. Imagine it expanding slowly like a bubble to the size of your hand."

Rin took a deep slow breath and focused on Sesshomaru's words. The pearl began to glow. She could feel warmth in her hand. She imagined the pearl growing in her mind and began to sweat. She peeked open her eyes and saw a glow in her hands the size of a melon. She smiled up at Sesshomaru, who smiled back at her.

Jaken moved a hand in to touch it and he received a shock. The glow stopped, and the pearl appeared just as a pearl again.

"Wow." Rin was impressed with the pearl, and herself. 

"Keep practicing." Sesshomaru stood up and readied to go. 

"I will." Rin got up, clutching the pearl. "Thank you Lord Sesshomaru." She was sad he was leaving so soon, but she was very excited about this new gift. "I hope you can stay longer on your next visit." Rin had so much to tell him about her first few weeks at of training and the new people she'd met.

Sesshomaru turned to face her as he began floating upwards, he smiled at her with his eyes then took off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> During the Sengoku period, girls were getting shipped off to be bred as young as 11 or 13! 13-15 was when they had coming of age ceremonies, they became adults and you could go to work or get married or whatever. Kagome and crew were all teens 15-18 going off on their own, fighting demons and sh!t. So Rin can do it too! (And in Yashahime the girls are 14). For modern legal purposes, Rin will not do anything too adult until she's 18. But I remember my teen years and I know teens are "worse" now so promiscuous stuff is going to start happening. Deal with it!  
> Genpuku - Coming of age ceremony could occur anywhere from 13-17 (sometimes as young as 10 or as old as 20) it varied widely from 1185-1868 based on how the war was going, the location of the family, and total randomness and personal feelings. Children were given a new name, but I'm ignoring that, Rin will always be Rin. Women were traditionally given a pleated skirt, while boys, specifically samurai, were given armour.  
> Mobakama- a cross between the mo (skirt) and the hakama (typical bottoms). It is an ankle length wrapped skirt, pleated into the waist ties on the side.  
> Furoshiki - large cloth used to wrap and transport things like clothes or gifts.   
> Zabuton -cushions   
> Shoji - hidden cupboards  
> Shinai and Bokutō (Bokken) are training swords/staffs. Bokken is dated earlier and is Oak or a heavy wood. Shinai was made of bamboo and was used 1500s and onward.


	2. Girl Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Girl Talk (sans pillows)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As the title suggests, this chapter will contain "girl talk" and a bit of a sex talk for Rin with Kagome, Sango, and OC Kimyko, talking about feelings and that kind of nonsense, and a semi-drunken feelings talk with Sesshomaru. You can skip this chapter if you want. I did try to keep it light and humours, but I kept drinking and it kept growing. The next chapter has fighting if you want to skip ahead.   
> *Warning for a bit of period/menzies talk in the beginning if you're squeamish. It's just a mention really. And also a note that the main women in this story are lucky b!tches who synch up and have near perfect and painless flows.   
> Japanese to English translations at the bottom.

When Rin was living in Kaede's village, they had a tradition that all the women who were menstruating, would gather in a specific hut together to support each other and, as the village men put it, "deal with their womanly affliction." Being in a village with resident Yokai and Yokai who occasionally attacked, it was also the safest place to be put during that time. Two days after she received the necklace from Sesshomaru, Rin could sense hers coming and decided to head back to Kaede's village. Kohaku's camp was very safe thanks to Shiori's barrier, but Rin missed her friends at the village. Plus, Rin was excited to show her necklace to Kagome and Sango. Rin had decided not to tell anyone in Kohaku's camp about it yet. Kohaku lent her Kirara to get to Kaede's village and she decided not to tell him yet either. She wanted to practice more.

Kagome noticed the necklace right away. "What's that?!" 

Rin, Kagome, Sango and one other woman from the village were sitting on the deck of the large hut women shared during their time of the month. They were enjoying the soft breeze and drinking tea made of Shakuyaku, Takusha and Senkyu.

"Lord Sesshomaru gave it to me." Rin smiled and gently touched the necklace, lifting it slightly to show Kagome.

"Really?" Kagome examined it. "It's beautiful. I'm surprised he would give you something like this."

"Why?" Rin blushed and stared down at it.

"Well..." She trailed off and took a sip of tea.

"It always surprises me how nice Sesshomaru is to you." Sango was braiding lavender stalks into her hair to keep herself mellow. She was enjoying the peace and quiet before her 3 children got the better of Miroku and he brought them to the hut. He was supposed to take care of them during this time, but he usually couldn't handle all 3 by himself for long.

"He's always been nice to me." Rin wasn't blind to the coldness Sesshomaru presented to others, but she took it as him just being a private person. She also wasn't blind to all the killing he did while she was with him, but it was usually for her protection and he was killing bad Yokai. She didn't see a difference between Sesshomaru and a human Samurai trying to make a name for himself, killing those who challenged them. Sesshomaru was just better, faster, stronger, a DaiYokai on a quest. Humans were the bad ones, bandits would seek out innocent lives to kill and torture and steal from. Sesshomaru didn't do anything like that, as far as she knew.

The other woman, Kimyko, didn't say anything but made a snort sound of disapproval.

"What did he say when he gave it to you?" Kagome asked curiously.

"That it's for my protection." Rin smiled, looking down at it again, remembering when Sesshomaru put it around her neck. "I bet Inuyasha has given you some very nice jewelry Kagome."

Kagome thought for a moment and frowned. "No. Inuyasha isn't really a jewelry giving guy. He brought me a dead bird once. Flowers. And a nice bowl from a small village he was in."

Sango dabbed at her mouth after choking on some tea from Kagome's dead bird comment. "Miroku made me a necklace." She rolled up one of her sleeves. "And gave me this bracelet. And flowers. He can be very romantic." She blushed. "But it's usually an apology gift because I caught him flirting or he feels guilty about flirting with someone." Sango shook her head. "I always thought perhaps Sesshomaru was doing the same thing. Apologizing. He seemed sad that you were upset because he wanted you to stay here. I figured he brought you things to make you feel better." 

"It seemed to me like they were a Mizuage." Kimyko pipped up.

Sango spit out her tea this time at the idea of Sesshoamru giving Rin gifts to buy her virginity. Kagome gasped and Rin didn't react, not being privy to such words or concepts.

"I saw his gifts simply as his only way to show affection for you. Whatever the reason for it" Kagome glared at Kimyko.

Rin sighed, "He was just trying to make my time here easier. He's just being nice."

"Jewelry is not nice." Kimyko tried to explain. "Jewelry is for courting." 

"Court-ing?" Rin was puzzled and thought about the word 'court' and Sesshoamru being noble.

Kagome and Sango looked at each other, silently deciding how to start this conversation. Rin was 15, she'd had her age ceremony, by feudal standards she was an adult already. Even though they still thought of her like a little sister, perhaps it was time to have 'the talk' with her. They'd avoided it so far for their own modesty. Without a mother, they were hoping Kaede would have done this, but here they were. 

Rin remembered hearing the word before, when she and Kaede were visiting a boy who was sickly but it turned out to be anxiety over a girl he spent most of his time with. "When you really care for someone?" Rin asker .

"Yes. Which we all know Sesshomaru does." Kagome wasn't sure how to broach this subject. "But courting is a higher type of care than you might have for someone rather than a friend or companion."

"Someone you have deeper feelings for." Sango nodded her head. "And someone you want to spend the rest of your life with in a romantic way."

"How old is Lord Sesshomaru?" Kimyko asked.

"I don't know." Rin answered honestly. Even after Kagome's talks about poetry and the Heian Period, Rin didn't dare be so bold as to ask Sesshomaru his age.

"My first husband was 30 years older than me." Kimyko spat. "Our parents arranged it all. He was never nice. I was not upset when he was killed. My Sasuke is much nicer."

"Husband?" Romance? It clicked in Rin's mind now what they meant by courting. Rin blushed heavily. She cared for Sesshomaru and always wanted to follow him, but did she feel romantically for him? Could he feel that way about her? This was so confusing. She'd never thought about her Lord that way before. She'd never thought about anyone that way. She knew people paired off and made children. She'd delivered so many babies and had asked Kaede about the process when she first began helping. Rin did Not like the detailed explanation she received at the time. She began thinking about it now and she felt so embarrassed she shook her head to get the thoughts away. Kagome and Inuyasha, Sango and Miroku. They were both affectionate towards each other. She could tell they were in love even though they were very different couples. They had little jokes between them. They spent lots of time together. They touched. Rin now realized how often Sesshomaru physically touched her. He was often putting his hand on her face, he patted her hand or head sometimes, he leaned against her. Actually, it was Rin who usually leaned against him. Or even on top of him! "Oh my!" Rin suddenly blurted out. "Sesshomaru touches me."

"Excuse me?!" Kimyko puffed up.

"Touches?" Kagome and Sango were suddenly worried.

"He holds my face. All the time! Does that mean he loves me?"

"Just the face?" Sango quickly asked.

"Yes. My cheek. Gently." Rin put a hand to her face, feeling her cheeks get hot. "Sometimes my hand maybe. And we lean against another! Is that courting too?"

The women laughed in relief at Rin's innocence. 

"That is more affectionate than most men would show a woman, but those are innocent. I think." Sango said, ignoring Miroku's constant grasp of women's behinds.

"It's hard to tell really." Kagome confessed. "He is a Yokai, not a regular man. And he is from a more peaceful and romantic time. Maybe it does mean something. It definitely shows he cares for you in some way or another."

"You'll have to ask him." Sango said.

"What?! No way! I can't ask Lord Sesshomaru something like that!" This was all becoming too much for Rin.

Kagome was beginning to like the idea of the two of them together. Big brother-in-law Sesshomaru and little sister Rin! "Well, how do you feel about him? Or how do you want him to feel about you?" 

Rin's breathing was becoming too quick and shallow. Her hands were trembling. 

Sango and Kimyko giggled but Kagome recognized a panic attack when she saw one. "Deep breathes." She put a hand on Rin's back and rubbed small circles. "We don't have to talk about this anymore. Just try to take slow deep breaths." Kagome glared at Kimyko and Sango. Kimyko left the deck and Sango busied herself with preparing more herbs for tea.

Rin began to calm down.

Kagome lowered her voice to a soothing tone. "Romance is a funny thing. You never know when that part of you is going to wake up inside you. Sometimes you don't want to see it, or you don't realize it's right in front of you. It takes a small gesture for you to notice or realize your true feelings. Or theirs." Kagome thought about how long it took her and Inuyasha to fall in love or even realize there were feelings there. She stopped rubbing Rin's back and faced her. "And you can respond however you feel. Don't be pressured by this conversation we just had. We don't know how exactly Sesshomaru feels about you. And maybe you're not sure how you feel about him. Maybe now that we've had this talk, your feelings will change. Inuyasha and I had almost a mutual hate for one another when we first met. But we kept having to work together and one day those feelings began to change. Hate to friendship. Friendship to love. Sango and Miroku were travel companions when they first met. Miroku was a monk who had a lust for all women. Eventually, he only had eyes for Sango. Well, actually his eye still wanders, but _he_ doesn't." Kagome let out a small chuckle.

Rin had a lot to think about. She had been, as Kagome called it, waking up lately. She had been noticing the men at Kohaku's camp differently. They all swam in the lake together and the men usually took all their top layers off. Rin had lately found that very appealing. All the men at the camp were very fit thanks to their training. Rin thought about the bulky Kamikura and some of the others, torsos above the water, droplets cascading down their bodies, hot sun reflecting off their abs. It made her stomach react in a way she wasn't used to. She wondered what Sesshomaru looked like under his Kimono. He was the strongest man she knew, he would certainly have well contoured abs. Rin felt giddy thinking about Sesshomaru in such a way. Should she feel shameful as well? She wasn't sure. Jaken suddenly came to mind, with his scolding toad-like face. He was shaking his head at her. Oh this was all too much. Rin leaned back onto the deck and stared up at the clouds. One of them was shaped like a crescent moon as if to tease her. Another cloud was shaped like a big dog. It was a big dog! Rin gasped and sat up too quickly and had to put a hand to her stomach from a cramp. 

Kagome followed her line of sight and saw Sesshomaru in the sky coming towards them. He turned into his human form as he hit the ground.

"Sesshomaru!" Rin was so surprised to see him, she forgot her manners to address him properly. 

"Are you alright? I sensed your distress." He could hear her heart racing, her face was completely red. His ears, nose, and eyes roamed the immediate surroundings.

"Of course she's not alright!" Kagome stood up, hands on hips and defensively dominated the space between Rin and Sesshomaru. "She's on her period. Get out of here!" 

Inuyasha jumped into the area on alert. "What's going on?" He had a wooden clip holding his nose closed. 

Rin was so embarrassed she ran into the hut. 

"Neither of you have any business here. Leave!" Kagome looked back and forth between the two.

"I had to come make sure you weren't being attacked didn't I?!" Inuyasha snapped. 

"Well we were all fine here until you two showed up!" Kagome calmed her tone down but held her position. "Rin is perfectly fine. Please go away." 

Sesshomaru hesitated. Rin was extremely distressed. But he could tell it was only emotional as everything in the area seemed to be in order. He walked away with Inuyasha. 

"Where did you come from?" Inuyasha asked.

"I was training Kohaku between here and his camp."

"Training?" Inuyasha felt a small pang of jealousy. His older brother never trained him, but he was training Kohaku? Then he realized the training was probably not very formal or communicative and was probably just Sesshomaru attacking Kohaku. "If you kill him, Sango will be really upset, and I'll probably help her avenge him." 

"Was that humour?"

"No! I mean it!"

Sesshomaru scoffed. "Unlike you little brother, I have control."

Inuyasha took offence and also proved Sesshomaru's point by shoving Sesshomaru in the shoulder. He barely moved from the attempted impact. Sesshomaru turned sideways and punched Inuyasha in the face.

"Oh yeah?!" Inuyasha pushed up his sleeves and rolled his shoulders back, ready to scrap with his brother.

Back in the hut, Rin felt like she could just die from the embarrassment. She was tucked into a ball on the ground.

Kagome came in as Sango was pouring fresh cups of tea. "Men are so clueless sometimes." She sat beside Rin and took up a cup to breathe in the calming smell.

"Are they gone?" Rin slowly sat up, looking around cautiously.

"Mostly. They're bonding outside on their way out of the village." Kagome handed Rin tea. "I know you don't want to talk about it anymore Rin, but just so you know, if Sesshomaru IS courting you, but you don't feel the same way. That's ok too. You don't owe him anything."

"I owe him my life." Rin took the cup and stared at her rippling reflection in the liquid.

"But you don't have to owe him...all of you. If you develop feelings for a human or a different Yokai or a Hanyo or whatever, that's okay. You can't help who you fall in love with. Sesshomaru is honourable and will respect that."

"I want to stay with Sesshomaru, as long as I live. But I never thought about it beyond just being by his side, travelling and fighting with him."

"You're very pretty Rin. Any man would be lucky to have you. You're funny, smart, I'm sure you're becoming a very good fighter."

Run blushed again. As much as she never thought about liking anyone romantically, she never thought about anyone being interested in her.

\-----------------------------------------------

The next day Rin was mustering up the courage to ask more about the subject. Her dreams were invaded with questions she had no answers to and memories from her past that were possibly more than they one appeared.

The four women were lying under the wide umbrella of a tree not far from the hut they were sharing, heads together, incense burning between them. They were eating berries, but Kagome was craving chocolate and other treats she missed from her Era. She wished she could still go back and forth to see her family and bring back conveniences from the future. Her eyes began to well, missing her mother. She realized Sango and Rin also could not see their mothers since they were dead. Kagome sniffled.

"What's wrong Kagome?" Sango asked. "Do you need more shakuyaku for pain?"

"No. I was just thinking about my mother. I miss her."

Sadness washed over all the emotional women as they thought about their mothers. Sango's family was all killed except for Kohaku. Kimyko's took a sip from a small bamboo saké bottle she had tucked under her arm, thinking about her lack of family. Rin couldn't remember her mother at all. She had very little memories from before she began travelling with Sesshomaru. Rin knew she once had a mother, father, and brother. She had a memory of her mother hugging her in fear, then shoving her in a barrel full of linen. She could remember her mother's fear, but not her face or the sound of her voice. 

"What's it like being a mother?" Rin asked Sango.

Sangos frown turned into a smile, thinking of her children. "It's wonderful. Fulfilling. Chaotic." She laughed. "It's such a joy to watch them figure out how the world works. I love them so much and I would do anything for them."

"You two certainly didn't waste time making those babies." Kimyko giggled. "I'm surprise you're even here. Shouldn't you be pregnant again by now?" She took another swig of saké.

Sango blushed. She was happy stopping at three children, but Miroku wanted more. Miroku mostly just wanted to have sex. "Three is plenty for now. We'll see what happens."

"Where's your babies?" Kimyko turned her head towards Kagome. "Not that I'm entirely For cross breeding, but you and Inuyasha have been living together for some time now. Enough time to have at least one!"

Kagome blushed, not really wanting to discuss such a private matter with Kimyko. "We're working on it."

"Is it different?" Kimyko rolled over now to better face Kagome, deciding to push the unspoken boundaries of the conversation.

"Is what different?" Kagome felt Kimyko's eyes on her.

"A Yokai? Is his penis different? Is sex different? Oh! Does he have two?!" Kimyko had a wicked smile on her face.

Kagome turned red.

Rin and Sango rolled over as well, curious about the answers, Rin more so than Sango.

Kagome could feel all the eyes on her, she sat up to face them. "I don't know! It's not like I have anything to compare him to."

"Does he have just one? Is it really big?" Kimyko was on her second husband and had explored a bit before she was re-married so she'd seen a small variety.

"Just one! He's built like a regular man, just more...powerful."

The corner of Kimyko's lip curled up.

Kagome shifted uncomfortably and tucked her knees up. "I don't know about sizes. Like I said, he was...my first."

"Miroku was my first and I think he's big." Sango let out a quick chuckle.

Kimyko looked around at the lack of objects near them. "I wish we had some Kyuri here to compare sizes. I'm sure your Yokai would be bigger." It didn't occur to her to use the bamboo flask in her hand that she took another sip out of.

"He's a Hanyo." Kagome corrected.

Kimyko thought about that for a moment. "Is that why you don't have babies yet?"

Kagome wasn't entirely sure. Neither was Inuyasha. "Maybe. Yokai and Humans don't always genetically mix. Hanyo even less so. Or at least less is known about them. We know a few Hanyo right now, but they're all young or don't have kids."

Rin considered what Kagome was saying and applied it to her and Sesshomaru. She still wasn't sure what was going to happen between the two of them but she knew how much Sesshomaru didn't like Hanyo. However he also didn't like humans. But clearly he liked Rin, and he seemed to be ok with Kagome, Kohaku and the other humans of the village. And he was getting along better with his brother and maybe even other Hanyo. Sesshomaru was changing. Maybe he would be ok with creating little Hanyo. Rin realized she didn't know if Sesshomaru wanted children at all. Maybe he eve already had a child. 

"What's it like?" Rin dared to asked. "Grandma Kaede has told me about the logistics of it. I have helped deliver several babies. But, what does it feel like?"

"Well now that depends on if the man knows what he's doing and if you want what he's giving you." Kimyko nodded her head. "My first husband was terrible. Rough hands grabbing at me. Little thing poking me." Kimyko put up her pink finger and wiggled it in the air.

"Terrible. But Sasuke..." She smiled. "That man has a way. And his tongue..." Kimyko touched her face, finally blushing a little.

"His tongue?" Rin pictured a kiss she oversaw once. Lips pressed together. Did Kimyko mean a tongue in a kiss? Or? Rin then pictured someone licking her face like a dog would. 

"Oh yes." Kimyko grinned. "That man can make me sing!" 

Kagome and Sango laughed lightly. 

"That dog of yours must have a good tongue!" Kimyko joked.

"Um! I don't want to talk about it." Kagome was blushing, thinking about Inuyasha lapping at her between her thighs.

"Miroku is good at it. And his Monk hands are nice and soft. He runs them all over me and leaves kisses everywhere." Sango ran a hand up her arm.

Kimyko winked at Sango, curling and uncurling her index and middle finger repeatedly. "Good sex doesn't always mean lots of babies. Just like lots of babies doesn't mean good sex. You're lucky Sango."

Kagome wasn't sure she wanted to talk about this. "I think maybe this is getting too inappropriate for Rin."

Rin's face was certainly rosy, but she was taking in the knowledge. Or at least the parts she understood.

"Oh, she's an adult. The girls gotta learn sometime! Men certainly talk about sex amongst each other, why can't we? Who better to teach her? The old woman? Some guy who maybe doesn't know what he's doing?" Kimyko looked at Rin. "You ask anything you want to know."

"You said he's good with his tongue. I've only ever seen a normal kiss. Just lips pressed together." Rin clapped her hands together. "What...what do you do with your tongue?"

Kimyko cackled. "We weren't talking about tongue during a kiss deary. Those are nice though. That action will come to you naturally. Passion is a wonderful thing and I'd say you wouldn't see something like that from a couple out in the open. That would be very inappropriate. We were talking about a tonguing in your nether regions." 

"What?!" Rin was mortified. 

"It feels great when done right!" Kimyko winked. "But maybe that's a bit too advanced and we should start somewhere else."

Kagome and Sango let Kimyko take the reigns and have the sex talk with Rin. They were happy not to have to do it themselves. They interjected when Kimyko got out of hand or the other women wanted to share their perspectives. Kimyko's husbands were opposites in bed, Miroku was soft and gentle, and Inuyasha was a Hanyo and apparently sloppy, which Kagome said wasn't as bad as it sounded. Rin took this all in, getting both excited and more nervous about the subject. Touches, tongues, fingers, positions, mouths on things Rin didn't think to put mouths on. Rin didn't realize there was so much to it. She didn't dare think about Sesshomaru or any other male she knew with these new ideas she learnt about. 

Her dreams that night took on a life of their own however. She dreamt she was in a field. Sesshomaru was there and he stuck out his tongue at her. He began flicking his tongue at her. Shocked, Rin turned around. When she turned, Kohaku, Kamikura, and some other men from the exterminator camp were in front of her. They all had their hakama layers shirked off around their wastes, water dripping down their chests. All of their tongues were sticking out. Kamikura stepped forward, reaching a hand out to Rin. She wanted to turn around again or run away but she was frozen. He touched her shoulder then slid his fingers gently down and back up her arm. She shivered. He moved in closer and shifted his hand to her back. His eyes looked deeply into her, his face so close to hers as his hand trailed down her back, then squeezed her bum, pulling her into him and his wagging tongue.

Rin woke up with a squeek. She sat straight up and looked around in the darkness of the hut. She could faintly see the other women sleeping. No one else was in the hut. Rin sighed in relief and lay back down. She started up at the ceiling for the rest of the night, trying to think about anything but sex or men.

\-----------------------------------------------

Rin thought about the adult conversation she had on the way back to Kohaku's camp. Courting, flirting, love, relationships, sex. She felt nervous about bumping into any male and knew she would over analyze their gazes now. Now that the ladies taught her a bit about flirting she wondered if the men were just looking at her, or if they were _looking_ at her. She also felt light and attractive for the first time. Kagome and Sango said she was pretty and that men were probably already interested in her but she just hadn't noticed. They mentioned a few tips about flirting but also further confused her by saying some people didn't intend to flirt or realize they were flirting. But Rin processed and mentally practiced what she learnt and it gave her a new confidence she hadn't known about.

There was a happy gathering when Rin arrived back at the camp. A Yokai had been defeated, it was the turn of a season, and the camp had scored several barrels of saké as their reward. Rin still needed to be alone with her thoughts, but she took a small barrel of sake and went to one of the farther fire pits. She wasn't much of a drinker yet, only having a sip or two on three occasions in her life so far, but this seemed like a time one would drink. Maybe the saké would help open her mind to her feelings.

She was both happy and disappointed when Sesshomaru materialized beside her. She was always happy to see her Lord but was still trying to sort through her feelings and thoughts. She'd already had a few sips of the saké. She was feeling warm and momentarily wondered if he was a hallucination. 

Sesshomaru quietly sat on a wooden stump beside Rin, watching the group of exterminators lost in their merriment a few paces away. He wanted to make sure she was alright since he felt her pull the whole time she was back in the village. Many times he sensed her heart race and it pulled at him like she was in great fear or danger. After getting yelled at by Kagome the first time, he decided to stay away unless he heard her call his name or sensed anything further than her quickening heart.

Rins voice eventually cut into the silence. "Lord Sesshomaru. How old are you?"

Sesshomaru hesitated. What an odd question to ask, but he wanted to oblige Rin in all things if he could. "What year is it?"

"I'm not sure. 1550 maybe. Or 60."

"Then I have been on this earth for approximately nine hundred years."

"Nine. Hundred?" Well, that certainly trumped Kimyko's 30 and Kagome & Inuyasha's 175 age differences. 

"Why do you ask?" 

"I was just wondering." A thousand more questions raced through Rin's mind, the alcohol was helping her confidence. "How long do DaiYokai live?"

"That depends if they are strong. It depends on if they take care of themselves. There is no definite answer."

Rin nodded her head in a tipsy manor. "Your mother is still alive."

"Yet, my father is not."

"Is your mother much older than you?"

"Yes." He didn't know how old his mother was, but he did know his parents spent at least one hundred year's together before he was born. 

"I'm a human. We only live 50 years if we're lucky. 70 if we're well protected like Grandma Kaede."

Sesshomaru didn't like this kind of talk from Rin. He didn't want to think of her dying again. Her life was so precious to him and he hated not having her around during his travels to watch over all the time. He did find it amusing to be away from her for a time and see how much she sprouted up. Humans grew into their adult forms fast at her age. "You will not die again for a long time Rin." He gently wrapped his arm around her protectively to reassure her, as he had done a few times before, but it made her heart rate and temperature spike. Did he hurt her? He took his arm away.

"Lord Sesshomaru...do you...enjoy spending time with me?" Rin chickened out from asking the question she really wanted to ask.

"I would not be here if I did not want to be." Came one of Sesshomaru's famous non-answers Rin was beginning to loathe.

"I hope you don't feel obligated to check on me just because you saved my life."

Sesshomaru wondered where these comments and questions were suddenly coming from.

"And I hope that you don't feel like you own me because you saved my life."

Sesshomaru's eyes quickly darted to Rin in disbelief that she would think such a thing.

"I feel like I do owe you my life. I just wonder if that's how you feel. Is that...is that why you're here? To check on...your property?"

Sesshomaru gasped on the inside, shocked. "Is that what you think of me?" He allowed the sadness he felt from the accusation seep into his voice.

"No. I just. Don't know..."

"Those humans are filling your head with nonsense." He chastised. 

"No, they're not. I'm just realizing that I'm confused and afraid. I don't want to lose you." Rin's voice hitched at the end.

Sesshomaru turned to her and put his hands on her shoulders to look square in her eyes. "Rin, I will only say this once. You will never lose me, you are mine. Not because you owe me your life but because I have decided it. And I am yours in whatever capacity you choose."

Rin shook her head. "You always tell me to choose. What do you want Lord Sesshomaru. What do you choose?"

"Just as I always instruct you to choose your path, that is how I live my life. If I did not want to be here Rin, I would not."

"And what do you want from me?" Rins eyes began to turn glossy.

Sesshomaru gently tucked some loose hair behind her ear. "I want you to be happy."

Rin scoffed and knocked his hands off her shoulders, breaking their eye contact. She took a big swig of the saké.

Sesshomaru was disappointed at her reaction. "I want you to grow up."

"I am grown up!" Rin glared at him. She wasn't sure what was wrong with her right now or where this fire was suddenly coming from. This saké stuff was dangerous. She took another sip.

Sesshomaru grabbed the small barrel and threw it too far away for Rin to hear it smash. Rin balled her hands into fists and with a shout attacked Sesshomaru. He easily grabbed her hands and twisted her around so her back was locked against his chest, arms crossed over her front. Rin tried to break free but it was useless. 

"What do _you_ want Rin?" Sesshomaru whispered, his hot breathe caressed Rins ear causing goosebumps to flush all over her skin. She began to feel hot and perspire slightly. Her mouth went dry. Heat was pooling in her stomach and down. 

Sesshomaru could sense the change in her. He released her, slightly pushing her forward. Rin stumbled but stayed on her feet. She turned around to face Sesshomaru. She was breathing shallow breathes and had a small spark of desire in her eyes. 

"You should go to bed Rin." He said calmly and stood up. 

Rin lightly nodded, and Sesshomaru walked away. Rin stood still for a moment to gather her composure. She ignored the group beckoning her to join the party still going on, but let Shiori walk her back to the huts since she was in 'Water - Tiger', the hut beside Rin and Otsuya's.

"Are you alright?" Shiori asked. "Lord Sesshomaru seems to have upset you."

Rin shrugged out of Shiori's helpful arm and leaned against her own hut. "He didn't. I embarrassed myself. Back in the village, Kagome and our friends taught me some new things, and I just asked Lord Sesshomaru about them. But in a stupid way."

"How is the Fox Yokai in the village?" Shiori's voice was soft.

"Shippo?" Rin hadn't seen him in a while. "He's fine. He's off at the fox exams most of the time. He comes back to the village every few days to pester Inuyasha, or train with the other Yokai and Hanyo. Especially now that Soten has joined the village."

"Soten?"

"She's a Thunder Yokai. She has an intense personality, but she's a good artist like Shippo. I think she only came to the village because Shippo was there."

Shiori was a bit sadly jealous to hear that. She hoped to leave Kohaku's camp once she had made a new crystal to hold the Camps barrier up without her. She wanted to go to Inuyasha's village to live with other Hanyo and Yokai instead of being glared at by humans. And she wanted to see Shippo. But if he already had a girlfriend, maybe he wouldn't want to see her. 

Rin left Shiori to her deep thoughts and stumbled into her hut, collapsing on the wooden floor. She passed out with no time to process her conversation with Sesshomaru. That, and her hangover, could wait until morning.   
\-------------------------   
The hangover came first. Rin woke to a headache that blurred her memory. After tea and rice for breakfast, her head began to feel better, but the rest of her felt worse. Memories bombarded her and Rin wanted to cry of embarrassment. She had been so bold and rash with Sesshomaru last night. How was she going to face him again? How was he going to forgive her? Rin buried herself in training, trying her best not to think about it. During free time after dinner, she decided to write Sesshomaru a letter, apologizing for her behaviour. As not to waste paper or ink, she drew messages in the dirt of the hut, over and over again through the evening. It was late when Otsuya yelled at her to blow out the candle and go to bed already that Rin realized the only thing to put in the letter was "I'm sorry." Rin carefully crafted the simple letter then went outside. She sighed when she realized a new moon was a few days away so she had no way to get the letter to him for a while. Rin slumped down to the ground clutching the letter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -"Tea made of Shakuyaku, Takusha and Senkyu." I got this recipe from a Textbook on Traditional Japanese medicine. For Anemia and/or menstruation: Shakuyaku - Lindera Root (for abdominal pain, strengthens memory), Takusha - Alisma Rhizome (reduces dizziness and nausea), and Senkyu- Cnidium Rhizome (for headaches). Say Cnidium again, isn't it fun?!  
> -Mizuage is an old tradition of buying the Virginity and/or financial sponsoring of an Oiran (high ranking Courtesan -not a full on prostitute or a Maiko/Geisha). Although the rise of Courtesan culture began in the 1600's, it was around in the 1500s (and way before) but in a less structured way and with less records.   
> -"Berries". I found notes (including in Sei Shōnagons book written between the years 990/1100) about eating berries/strawberries/raspberries, and wikipedia tells of a few native species to Japan, but I don't know the dates or the Japanese name of the species that have been bred out, so I just said "berries".  
> -Kyuri - Cucumber  
> -Sesshomaru's age is based on the "Villains of Anime" article and the book by RT "Zusetsutaizan Ōgikaiden" which say he is over 900 years old and appears as 18 or 19


	3. Extermination time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Extermination time. Some action scenes, and what the heck is going on with Rins necklace?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rin is 16 in this chapter and as such begins to develop a bit more of an attitude. Translations are normally at the bottom but I mention two right away so I'll put them here as well. Measurements: Sahku is a foot, Ken is a Metre, Ri is kilometre.   
> Character reminder as well: -Serina & Suzuna were Ninja's who enlisted Sango's help in Episode 59 -Shiori is the Bat Yokai from Chapter 214/Episode73   
> Female OCs - Tomiko, Akiko, Kicho, Male OCs - Dosan, Kamikua, Hidekatsu, Nobuhiro
> 
> *It has never been more obvious as with this chapter that Canadian VS British VS USA English are so different. Due to a glitch in my Word program, I got two different spell checks going, and AO3 has a USA spell check. Everything's apparently wrong! and automation kept flipping some of my words! Please accept my additional "u"s and a "c" instead of an "s" or a "z" instead of an "s" where it might seem like a mistake to you. But I'm sure you'll understand it no matter what Country you're from. This includes words like lept vs leapt and dreamt vs dreamed. I just......give up on this chapter, I'm tired.

Rin sent her apology letter out to Sesshomaru on the night of the new moon. It went over the same way as last time. She waved the flower around and eventually an eel type creature took it away. A few days later Sesshomaru arrived during the day with Jaken and Ah-Un. Rin repeated her words from the letter and Sesshomaru told her there was nothing to forgive. Embarrassed, she was tempted to bring up some of the conversation, but with Jaken there, she was hesitant. Plus Sesshomaru didn't seem like he wanted to talk about it. At Jakens expense, Sesshomaru persuaded her to practice creating her barrier with the necklace and see how distant she could keep Jaken from her. 

Rin was sitting with her eyes closed, concentrating on enlarging her meido barrier. Jaken was 2 sahku in front of her, uneasy, while Sessshomaru was a further distance away, sitting against a tree.

A glow came from Rins necklace and began expanding outwards, eventually big enough to encompass her whole body. Rin took a deep breath and tried to expand more. The edges of the barrier began to waver but it did grow, nearly reaching Jaken before it fizzled out. Rin opened her eyes, panting slightly. Jakens frog face was staring at her smugly, but silent. She could see Sesshomaru and was glad his eyes were closed instead of staring at her. She clapped her hands together and closed her eyes again to focus. Her barrier expanded, wiggled, and fizzled out much like the first time. Rin let out a frustrating noise. 

"Keep your eyes open." Came Sesshomaru's voice. 

Rin opened her eyes and looked at Sesshomaru, whose eyes were still closed. With her eyes open, she wasn't sure if she should be looking at the pearl or at her target, Jaken. 

Rin stared at the pearl and concentrated. The familiar glow began, but it didn't grow. Out of habit now, Rin closed her eyes and expanded the barrier to the size of her body, she could feel it. Then she opened her eyes and focused on Jaken, trying to push the barrier to him. She began grinding her teeth at the force she was putting into it. Eventually the wall began moving towards Jaken. However, the part of the barrier at her back began shrinking, or moving with the front. Was she pushing the whole barrier to Jaken? 

Jaken's eyes became more buggy than usual as the barrier approached him, but he stayed still until it touched him and zapped him onto his back. 

Rin relaxed and the barrier disappeared. She took a deep breath. "Are you alright Master Jaken?"

Jaken was a little crispy but otherwise fine and lifted a hand in the air to wave.

"Did you see that Lord Sesshoamru?" Rin asked. "I think I was moving the whole barrier to Jaken."

"If an enemy was behind you as well, you would have been killed." 

Rin silently sulked. Sesshomaru said he'd forgiven her for her outburst a couple weeks ago, but he was being more stern with her than usual.

Jaken sat up and crawled back to his spot in front of Rin.

"One more Sahku this time Jaken." Sesshomaru commanded.

The imp shimmied backwards and was now 3 Sahku away from Rin.

Rin began again by closing her eyes to focus and expand the barrier. She opened her eyes before it fully encompassed her and flared it out around her. Since Sesshomaru was always annoyingly right, instead of pushing the whole barrier, she tried to only push out the front towards Jaken. She could feel the back shrinking as she pushed out the front again. Maybe this was the full size of the barrier. Rin stopped pushing and tried to expand the whole barrier outwards more. Maybe it had to grow spherically. Nothing changed. More out of frustration than experimentation Rin shoved her hands forward. The barrier shifted forward and shot Jaken several Ken away. Rin quickly stood up and went to Jaken.

Jaken was smoking slightly but only appeared a bit more crispy than usual. 

"Are you alright Master Jaken?" Rin poked at him and he puffed out some air. Rin looked back to Sesshomaru. "He's okay!" Sesshomaru's eyes appeared to still be closed. 

Jaken rolled to a sitting position and blinked his eyes a few time. "I don't think I want to do that again."

"Oh come on Master Jaken. You're alright." Rin pat Jaken on the back. "You are a strong powerful Yokai. You won't be defeated by the small barrier of a mere human girl!" After months of travelling together and years of visits, Rin knew just how to boost the Imps spirits.

"Well of course not!" Jaken coughed and stood up. "I just need a minute."

"Stay standing this time." Sesshomaru said.

Rin didn't like that he was pushing her limits. She wanted to practice more while sitting. But she obliged. It took her a little longer to glow and grow her barrier from the pearl, but it eventually fit to her form.

"Run at her." Sesshomaru's eyes opened and he stood to watch.

Rin and Jaken both looked at Sesshomaru, then each other. Jaken's little legs ran the short distance between them. Rin put her hands up in front of her and the barrier turned it self into a shield. Jaken bounced right off it and slid several Sahku backwards.

"Master Jaken?" Rin stayed still this time, tired from the barriers effort. She looked over to Sesshomaru who was silent, but she was revealed to see one of his micro-expressions showing that he was pleased. 

"Keep practicing Rin. Move around with the barrier." Sesshomaru began to walk away. "Lets go Jaken."

"I will!" Rin waved and smiled, proud of herself. 

\--------------------------------

Rin had killed some small Yokai before, during attacks on the camp, but this was going to be the first actual extermination she was invited to go out and participate in. It would be the first of many tests for her to prove she was ready to join Sesshomaru again. He always said he would accept her as she was, but she felt so useless sometimes. Jaken always teased her that she was a useless human; weak, in the way, a distraction, a burden or a target that Sesshomaru would then have to rescue when he had more important things to do. She was at Kohaku's camp so she could be something more. She wanted to be a team. Joining this extermination was another step towards her goal.

Rin pulled her hair back into a high ponytail and looked down at her exterminator outfit to give it a final glance over. She was so excited but did her best to stay calm and not have a goofy grin on her face. Kohaku had to repeatedly remind her that exterminating Yokai was serious business. Although everyone enjoyed her bubbly personality, sometimes she had to not look so genuinely happy. She had to go for menacingly happy, like Otsuya. Rin took a deep breath then walked out of her hut. She was concentrating so hard on looking serious while she walked that she tripped on a stone and fell into the wall of a nearby hut, scraping her hand. She wasn't too embarrassed since she hadn't completely fallen down, until she looked up and saw the team staring at her. 

Kohaku sighed and walked over to Rin. "We haven't even left the camp yet and you're already hurt." Kohaku had his professional face on, but Rin could see concern and doubt in his eyes. 

"I'm not hurt, I'm fine." Rin said stubbornly. 

"Your hand is bleeding."

Rin lifted her hand to examine it. It was scraped and gently bleeding. She'd trained too hard to be left behind because of a klutzy scrape. She poked and put pressure on the blood seeping out, thinking of Sesshomaru. She wanted to prove she could be a decent fighter for him. She grinned with a new determination and wiped the blood across her cheeks with her index and middle finger to mimic Sesshomaru's markings. "I can do this."

Kohaku grinned and nodded his head. He walked back to the group with Rin behind him. "Let's go."

Kohaku was bringing a big group of the exterminators to an island that had recently become the target of a Mantis Yokai tribe. Dosan, Hidekatsu and Kamikura led three teams which including Rin, Otsuya, Tomiko, Kicho, and several others. They all had to swim across to the island except for Kohaku who rode Kirara to scout ahead and direct them in the water to a good landing point. From the rocky shore, they split up into the 3 groups, Kohaku and Kamikura leading Rin, Tomiko, and one other man from the camp. Rin and Akiko were the long distance team and were armed with bow and arrows. They both each had a Kaiken strapped to their hips as well. 

A few screams could be heard from the small village in the middle of the island. The exterminators quietly surrounded the village, only having to kill one Yokai scout. The band of Yokai were sawing and chopping off body parts with the spikes on their arms and slowly devouring the pieces. The female leader was on top of a pile of carcasses both animal and human, about to guzzle the drippings from a mans torso. 

Hidekatsu sent a flaming arrow into the Mantis leaders face. At that signal, the exterminators charged in from all angles for the attack. Rin and Tomiko stayed back, firing arrows and providing backup. The Yokai let out screeches of surprise and defended their new territory. The Mantis shell were very strong so it took the exterminators a lot of force and cunning to take them down. Arrows slid right off their backs, but if you hit a Mantis right in the head, especially between their buggy eyes, you could take one down with a single shot. Those in close combat had to hit the stomachs or the limb joints. Their razor sharp arms were tricky, swiping, clawing, snipping. The Yokai took down two of the exterminators and cut Tomiko in the leg putting her out of commission for the rest of the month. The exterminators managed to kill nine Mantis Yokai. Sadly only 4 villagers survived.

Tomiko and Rin split up to walk the edge of the village to let any hiding humans know they could come out and to sound the alert of there were any stray Mantis Yokai left. Rin took the alone time to see if she could create a barrier while her adrenaline from the battle was still high. She walked slowly, trying to multi-task and not fall over this time. She kept her eyes on the forest and could feel the warmth of the pearl spreading from her chest. It had grown to about the size of a melon, but it's edges were wavering.

"Behind you!" came a male voice. 

Rin whipped around to see a Mantis Yokai, bloody from the battle, but still standing, seething.

"Duck!" came the voice again.

Rin ducked as it swiped. Too close for arrows, Rin fumbled for her kaiken as she ran around the Yokai. She hit it's back with her short sword, but the Mantis shell was too hard. The Yokai spun around and attacked with a razor sharp arm. Rin caught it with her kaiken but the Yokai was stronger than her and began pushing her down. 

"No!" Rin yelled and a force came out of the Meido pearl, pushing the Yokai off of her. Rin took the opportunity to run to the village. "Over here!" Rin shouted as she arrived back into the village. The Mantis Yokai followed and was taken out by several of the group.

Rin sighed into the ground, that was a close call. She looked back at the dead Yokai and to the woods they came out of. There was no one else there. Who belonged to the voice she heard? 

"Are you alright?" Kamikura came over and offered her a hand back to her feet.

"Yes, thank you." Rin took his help up. She looked over Kamikura, he was covered in neon goop from a Mantis Yokai carcass and had little bloody cuts along his arms. "There was a man out there somewhere. I didn't see him, but he helped me."

"I'll check it out." Kamikura left Rin, jogging towards the forest. He came back a few minutes later with no news of the mystery man in the woods. 

Rin shrugged. He was probably still hiding and would come out when the village was cleared of Yokai and strangers. 

The exterminators left the village by boat, now that the villagers had some to spare. Kohaku told the whole team he was proud of them. They lost two, but that was better than loosing everyone. They walked back to their camp at a relaxing pace, but Kohaku told them they all had to train harder so they would never loose anyone again. 

The exterminators picked up their weary pace when the camp gates came into view. They were excited to be somewhere with food and a barrier so they could get some rest. 

Sesshomaru was standing off the side of the path and resisted the urge to shake his head at the sad sight of the worn out, dirty exterminators. Kohaku nodded at him, but continued with his people into the camp.

Rin veered off the path from the group. "Lord Sesshomaru!" She beamed up at him. 

"Are you well?" Sesshomaru led Rin a bit further from the path to the tree line to sit. He was happy she appeared uninjured from her exterminating excursion. 

"Oh yes. I had so much fun! It was a lot of walking, and swimming, and running and-" Rin plunked down beside Sesshomaru. "The Mantis Yokai were very big and their bodies were hard, but I shot one right in the head." Rin put a finger to her forehead to demonstrate.

Sesshomaru smiled on the inside at Rins natural whimsical behaviour. She was always a delight to come back to. 

"And after the battle," Rin went on. "or at least I thought it was after. I tried to make a barrier while I was still out on patrol. I managed to make a small one." Rin held up the necklace. "Then I was attacked by a stray Mantis! It swung at me and caught my sword and was pushing me." Rin was acting this all out for Sesshomaru. "Then somehow I pushed the barrier out and it pushed the Yokai off me! I don't know how I did that. Then I ran to the village and the rest of the team took out the Yokai."

"I'm glad it is working. Keep practicing." He was proud of her. 

Rin gave him more details about the battle that took place and rambled on about her training and camp life. Sesshomaru listened, but was mostly enjoying the musical tone of her voice. Rin was exhausted and her rambles turned to mumbles and eventually she passed out, leaning against Sesshomaru. When it was dark, Sesshomaru carried her back to her hut and put her on her sleeping mat. 

\--------------------------------

Kohaku gathered a small team of Kamikura, Rin, and Tomiko for a Frog Yokai in a lake. For something like this, Kohaku wouldn't need even a team this size, but it was good to bring the rookies out. Dosan was also joining the team, a few Ken behind to be backup and a shadow for the women if needed. 

The Frog Yokai had killed the majority of the fish in the lake and blew enormous bubbles to ensnare the local humans. Some he kept at the bottom of the lake, alive, and others were poisoned by gas in the bubbles. 

The team spread out a bit to give the Frog more places to look and try to confuse him. The Yokai blew some bubbles that hung in the air around it defensively. 

Rin and Tomiko began shooting arrows to pop the bubbles. Since the frog was doing defence only so far, Rin tried to also focus on her Meido necklace and at least create a small barrier from the pearl. 

"Look out!" Kamikura's voice and another voice shouted.

Rin ducked and pointed her arrow at a bubble darting after her. It was too close to pop, she would get hit with the poisonous vapors inside.

Kamikura suddenly leapt through the sky, slashing the bubble, and picking up Rin to roll the two of them out of the way. They landed with Rin on the ground, facing Kamikura's broad form. 

"Are you alright?" Kamikura brushed some hair off Rins face and stared into her eyes, smiling.

Rin suddenly felt flushed. No one had even been on top of her, no one had ever touched her face like that except Sesshomaru. His body was so close to hers. She subtly nodded her head.

"Hey!" Kohaku shouted. 

Kamikura snapped up, taking Rin with him from an arm Rin didn't even realize was around her. Rin quickly distanced herself from him as they surveyed the scene. 

Tomiko was firing arrows and Kohaku was whipping his Kusarigama. The frog was leaping around the surface of the lake, shooting bubbles in every direction. 

Rin and Kamikura joined in; Rin firing arrows and Kamikura throwing the end of his Kusarigama. Eventually some hits landed. Kohaku's Kusarigama got wedged into the flesh of the Frog and he dragged it to shore. Kamikura struck a fatal blow and poison seeped out of the Yokais body. 

There was nothing worth saving from this Yokai, so they only dragged the corpse out of the water and a bit away from the lake. 

The walk home was quiet but that evening at dinner Tomiko spoke up. "So, you and Kamikura huh?" She asked in a playful tone.

"What?!" Rice fell out of Otsuya's mouth. "You and Kamikura?"

Rin blushed as the women around her stopped eating and gave her attention she didn't want. "No...there's no Me and Kamikura." 

"The two got very cozy during battle today." Tomiko elbowed Otsuya and raised her eyebrows.

"How do you get cosy during battle?" Shiori asked, shyly curious.

"Oh, they were rolling around in the mud." Tomiko made a kissy face.

"No! It wasn't like that!" Rin's face was red. "He just...saved me...and ended up on top of me."

"And?" Otsuya asked.

"And then he got off me." Rin said matter of factly.

"Boring." Suzuna, pipped up.

"Kamikura's got so much bulk." Otsuya squeezed the air in front of her. "I could see that being appealing for some. But I like'em lean like Kohaku."

"You like Kohaku because you're a suck up." Tomiko spat.

Otsuya put up her hand. "You're just jealous because he doesn't favour you anymore." 

"He doesn't favour you either." Tomiko nodded her head towards the Ninja sisters. "Someone has been sneaking in and out of his hut lately and it's not either of us."

Serina glared at her older sister Suzuna, outting her. The women all laughed at their mischievous behaviour but Rin was still blushing. 

\--------------------------------

Kohaku and Dosan took Rin and Otsuya on an exterminating excursion, with Nobuhiro shadowing in the distance in case things got out of hand. This would be an exam for the women. If they could defeat a Yokai each, on their own, then they could be trusted to go on excursions all the time without a shadow for back-up. They would no longer be rookies. Training would always continue though as there was always more to learn and skills to polish. 

Two lizard and two bull headed Yokai were making their way up a river, taking out fisherman along the way. The team reached the Yokai band halfway through the day. They took a small break to catch their breath and for Kohaku to lay down the plan.

Dosan had brought fire power with him on this trip. He had a large gourd full of oil and a flamed torch. His weapon of choice was a spiky Kusarigama, but he liked to test out new tricks. Kohaku had his Kusarigama from Master Totasai and rarely used anything else even though he was becoming rather good with a Katana. Otsuya and Rin both had Naginata's to work with and Kaiken's on their hips. 

They surrounded the surprised band of Yokai on the river bank. Dosan sprayed a large stream of fire in their direction to separate them. The Yokai scattered and each exterminator followed one Yokai.

Kohaku lobbed off the head of the first bull easily enough so Dosan gestured for him to take on the other one. The other, larger bull, grabbed Kohaku by the face. It lifted him off the ground and tossed him backwards into a tree.

"Do you need assistance?" Dosan chuckled.

Kohaku wiped the Yokai germs of his face and got back to his feet. "Fuck off." He started swinging the end of his Kusarigama in a tight circle at his side.

Rin and Otsuya were running through the woods, Naginata's on point, tracking the lizard Yokai. The Yokai eventually stopped running and flicked their tongues out at the women like snakes. One advanced on Otsuya. She ducked left, right, left, and swiped at the Yokai. Another right swipe and Otsuya cut off the Yokai's arm. Wincing in pain, Otusya took the opportunity to take a big swing, slitting it's throat.

Even though Rin had her growth spurt, she still felt short compared to the Yokai before her. She attacked, hitting it in the leg, a shoulder, the tail, but it was unfazed and strong.

The Yokai swung a few times and Rin ducked and ground her feet to stabilize and energize. She subconsciously sparked her necklace as well and it created a small barrier, mostly just around the necklace itself. "Climb." A male voice said. It was the same voice from when she was fighting the Mantis Yokai. Rin had heard it a few times now during battle, and was starting to believe it was coming from the necklace itself.

Rin managed to quickly climb up the Yokai's body as it tried to grab her. At the top she shoved her Naginata all the way through it's head. She jumped off the Yokai as it's body fell to the ground.

"Well done girls." Nobuhiro appeared from between two trees. He tossed them both some rope to tie around the Yokai's feet. "They were pretty easy prey but you both did the job." 

The women tied up the lizards and Nobuhiro dragged their bodies to the river bank where Kohaku and Dosan were sawing off the heads of the dead Bull Yokai. The bull heads and the lizard bodies were going to be taken back to the camp to forge new armor and weapons.

Rin was staring at her necklace on the walk back. This was maybe the eighth time she had heard the voice. It definitely had to be coming from the pearl. Was it coming from the other side? The underworld? It seemed to be a helpful protective voice, not an evil one. Maybe it was the barrier itself, an inner voice of hers, but male. 

When she returned to camp, Rin took a little walk away from everyone and sat down in some bushes. She held out her hand and created a small melon sized barrier. Opening her eyes, she looked around. She didn't see anyone.

"Hello?" She tested. "Is there someone there?"

"Hello Rin." Came the male voice.

Rin gasped. "Who are you?"

"I am your friend Rin." The voice cooed. 

"Where are you?"

"I don't know."

Rin looked into the depths of the pearl. She didn't see anyone there either. "Are you...me?"

There was a tsk sound. "No Rin. I am myself."

"Are you helping me create my barrier?"

"No. But when you create it, I can see through it."

"Thank you for helping me." Rin smiled, not sure if the voice could see her.

"Of course Rin. It has been a long time since I've seen the world. If I help you, I get to see it again!"

"Are you...a Yokai?" Rin wasn't sure if that was a rude question or not. There was so much she wanted to know about this mysterious voice in her necklace.

"Yes. Does that upset you?"

"Not at all. I like Yokai." Rin remembered that the voice was helping her exterminate Yokai. "Well, some Yokai."

"Intelligent Yokai like myself and your...Lord Sesshomaru, are good Yokai." There was a hint of a laugh in the voice.

"I can't wait to tell Lord Sesshomaru about you!" Rin said excitedly.

"No." The voice quickly said. "Don't tell him yet. It should be a surprise for later. Besides, he may not like the idea of me talking to you. He may seperate us. Then I won't be able to help you. Don't you want my help?"

Rin wasn't sure how to feel about that. She didn't like to keep secrets at all, let alone from Sesshomaru. The voice was helpful though and Rin knew Sesshomaru wouldn't mind if the voice was helping her stay alive. "Yes, I enjoy your help. I will keep our secret, for now." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Sahku - measurement foot - The base unit of Japanese length is the shaku, based upon the Chinese chi, which was originally a span taken from the end of the thumb to the tip of an outstretched middle finger, then changed to a man's big toe to heel, then changed again.  
> -Ken - measurement metre   
> -Kaiken - short sword for women  
> -Naginata - Spear  
> -Kusarigama - Blade on a stick on a chain with a weight on the end. Like a sickle. Kohaku's weapon in the manga/anime.  
> -Serina & Suzuna were Ninja's who enlisted Sango's help in Episode 59.  
> -Shiori is the Bat Yokai from Chapter 214/Episode73 


	4. Rat City

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's a Rat Yokai problem in Gokayama.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rin is 16/17 in this chapter.  
> Yes, there will be Rats. I was picturing something like the ROUS from the movie The Princess Bride, but with spider eyes....so, large rats, with at least 20 eyes on each side of their pointy faces. Yup.  
> As always, Japanese to English translations at the bottom. There's heaps in this chapter. sorrynotsorry.  
> I'm sorry this chapter took so long to post. I got sick. Then my Work re-opened. Then I caved to the pressure of finding out who BTS are and sunk DEEP into their universe. And I had too much fun researching the beautiful RL places in this chapter. (and constant editing) I'll try to be faster on the next one.

Dosan was pacing back and forth in front of the bulk of the Yokai Exterminators. "Courage. Benevolence. Respect. Honesty. Honour. Duty. Righteousness. Self-Control. These are our virtues." Dosan looked over the team, making eye contact with every member. Kohaku should have been giving this speech but he was absent. "There's a Rat problem in Gokayama, Etchū Province. Tomorrow we depart for the journey. From the information we were given, there is possibly a large swarm of Rat Yokai in the area, being led by another type of Yokai. So far, we have no identity of their leader." Dosan stopped pacing and faced the group. "Unless you are fresh to the team, you are coming with us. These Rats have been chewing their way through villages, on ships that have tried to dock in the nearby bay and along the Shō river. We have to take out the whole swarm, find their leader and kill him. Nobuhiro will be staying here with Shiori, the rookies and the civilians to keep the camp safe. Everyone else get in some heavy training this morning, sharper your weapons, and get ready for tomorrow." Dismissed, the exterminators began dispersing. "Rin, come here."

Rin left her friends and went to Dosan. She hoped he wasn't going to tell her to stay back too. 

"I need you to do something for me." Dosan led Rin to the front gate. "Keep this quiet." He looked around to make sure no one was listening. "Kohaku is at a brothel and I need you to go retrieve him."

Rin gasped. She knew what a brothel was but had no idea where they were located and was shocked to hear that Kohaku would be at a place like that. Rin had heard Otsuya, Tomiko, and a few of the other women making lewd comments about Kohaku and his behavior, or rather their behavior together, but she took it to be their type of humour. But now Kohaku was at brothel?

"Every time I send a man over there, they end up staying or they can't get Kohaku out. You two are friends, you have a history, you can get him out of there."

"He's trapped there?" Rin was confused, maybe there was more to brothels than she thought. 

Dosan tried not to roll his eyes. "In a way, yes. I need you, please, to go get him and bring him back here so he can be ready to lead us tomorrow."

"Ok." Rin nodded. Of course the team needed their leader. "Dosan, where is the brothel?"

The brothel wasn't too far away. It was against the side of a mountain only two hills away from the Camp, but Rin had never been that way before. A hot spring and river ran underneath the tall structure to double it as a bath house. 

Rin could hear talking, giggles and music as she approached the tall structure. She timidly tapped on the door, but eventually had to just slide the door open and go in when she realized no one was going to greet her. 

There were candles and incense burning everywhere, Rin was surprised the whole place hadn't caught on fire. The interior was beautiful with reds, greens and golds all being surrounded by whisps of steam from the hot water. Three hallways and a large staircase faced her.

"Who...are you?" An old woman was suddenly behind Rin. She was tall and slender, with her grey hair pulled up into a bun. She was wearing very elegant looking silk Kimonos.

Rin bowed her head, not sure how to address people in a brothel. "Hello. My name is Rin. I am looking for my Sesnei, Kohaku."

"Kohaku?" The woman walked a circle around Rin, assessing her. "Kohaku? Hmm."

"He is the leader of our Camp and I am here to escort him back immediately."

"Oh, that Kohaku. Well yes, he is here. But he's very busy with my girls." The woman tilted her head. "If you would like to stay and wait, I will offer you a free hour in the bath, as a thank you for your fearless extermination service to the land." She bowed her head slightly.

Rin was tempted. She hadn't had a nice hot bath in a while. "No thank you. I really need to get Kohaku."

The woman made a "hm." sound. "Fine. Wait here, I'll go see if I can find him." The woman left.

Rin backed herself to the nearest wall, not wanting to be snuck up on again and waited.

A few men came out of the hallways or down the stairs and left the building, hiding their faces from Rin or flashing her a creepy smile. One man even came in, looked surprised to see someone like Rin, then ran up the stairs. A scantily clad voluptuous woman came out of one hallway and went to another. 

Rin eventually decided to go looking herself. She realized this was not the greatest plan when she slid open a door and saw a naked man squished between two naked women. Through another entryway she saw a woman's bath with three men diving below the water to hide as the women giggled instead of shooing them away like Rin had expected them to do. Rin listened at the next room before opening the door. It sounded like men were playing Go. Rin slid the door open and peered in. Two men were certainly playing Go, but they were naked. They each had a woman massaging their shoulders and two other naked women were dancing. Rin slowly slid the door back closed.

"Did you like what you saw?" The old woman was suddenly beside Rin again.

Rin gasped, startled. "I'm sorry. I'm just looking for Kohaku."

The woman bopped Rin on the nose with a fan. "You shouldn't go poking your nose around or you might loose it." 

Rin put a hand to her face defensively and was getting tempted to hit the Brothel woman. 

"Kohaku is this way. Come." The woman began walking away, her silken layers trailing behind her. 

Rin followed, both trying to look around, but also trying not to see anything she didn't want to. She'd already seen more flesh than she ever had before and didn't care to see anymore. She now feared that Kohaku might be naked as well when she finds him. 

The woman led her up two flights of stairs, then down one at the other end of the hall. She led Rin around the floors hallway, and then around a second time. 

"Where are we going?" Rin finally asked.

The woman let out a delightful laugh. "I'm just playing with you. I wondered how many times it would take." The woman walked a bit further, then slid open a door and gestured Rin in. 

Rin glared at the woman then went to the doorway and cautiously looked in.

Kohaku was topless, but wearing his Hakama. Rin sighed in relief. Two other men that Rin recognized from the camp were also there. One was naked and being spooned by a woman on the floor. Kohaku and the other man were surrounding a table with a bunch of partially clothed women. A few of them had cards in their hands and they all had saké either in their hand, in front of them on the table, or in one case, dribbling out of their mouth. Rin was disgusted and embarrassed. 

"Rin?" Kohaku noticed her in the doorway. "Rin! Come in, come in! Join the fun!"

Rin took a step into the room. She was hoping that as soon as Kohaku saw her, he would get up to leave, but clearly that was not going to happen. 

"Everyone, this is Rin. She's my best girl." Kohaku's words slurred out as he beckoned Rin over.

"I thought I was your best girl." One of the brothel women sulked and let her loose Kimono fall off one shoulder.

"Oh, you are." Kohaku looked at the woman's shoulder, then back to Rin. "But Rin and I. We've been through some shit. Right Rin?"

Rin had never seen him like this. It seemed so out of character. "Yes Kohaku. And we need to go get ready for some more...shit." Rin shuddered at using such an improper word. She knelt beside Kohaku.

"Tomorrow. Yes." Kohaku nodded and roughly grabbed Rin's face. "But today, is today." He let go of her face and gestured to the general area. The brothel women all giggled.

"You shouldn't even be here today Kohaku." Rin said. "What about the virtues of Bushidō? Self-control. Respect. You're not showing either of those."

Kohaku waved her off dismissively while a woman whispered something in his ear.

"We have to go back to Camp Kohaku!" Rin tried to sound stern. 

"She broke up with me, did you know that?" Kohaku took a big sip of saké. 

"Who?" Rin didn't even know he was formally pursuing anyone. 

"That sneaky Ninja! She won't see me anymore." Kohaku hiccuped. "All you women at my Camp. Single women. So mysterious. So catty. You're all at _my_ camp. You're all my women!" Kohaku keeled forward intot he table. 

"Kohaku!" Rin grabbed Kohaku's shoulders and sat him back up. His eyes were closed so she shook him a few times. "Kohaku!"

"What?" Kohaku opened his eyes and looked around. "Oh, Rin. Hi." He slugged an arm around Rin's shoulders.

Rin sighed heavily, she'd never felt this feeling of dissapointment before. "Kohaku we have to go. I will drag you out of here if I have to." Rin managed to pull Kohaku to his feet.

"Leave here? Never!" Kohaku jumped away from Rin and picked up his sword from where he was sitting. "Show me what you've got!"

"Kohaku no. Lets go." Rin put her hands on her hips, realizing how similar the toddlers from Kaede's village were to drunken men.

Kohaku waved his sword a bit and jabbed at the air around Rin. He then hit her arm with the flat side of the blade. "Pin me down or I'm not going anywhere until I've had one more drink and one more woman!"

The brothel women giggled and cheered Kohaku on.

Rin took out her Kaiken, which was shorter than Kohakus Katana. She held it up and widened her stance, hoping that if Kohaku charged, she could gently deflect him onto the floor. 

Kohaku charged, but despite the fact that he was obviously drunk, his fighting skills were still focused. He knocked Rin onto the ground and cut a slit down one leg of her hakama. Kohaku laughed wickedly as Rin got back on her feet. Their swords clashed twice before Rin was knocked down again. Kohaku cut a slit down the other leg of her Hakama, somehow careful enough not to cut her skin. Everyone in the room was laughing now and moving out of the way as Kohaku and Rin manoeuvred around. 

Rin was seething now and was ashamed to admit she was actually trying to hit him. She was willing to try anything to slow him down so she could get him out. She now understood why this place was such a trap. 

Kohaku jumped on the table and Rin took a swing at his legs. He jumped over it and Rin realized she shouldn't do something like that. What if she did hit him and chopped off his legs? Then where would they be? 

Kohaku took a swipe at her head and Rin ducked. She then jumped on the table with him and grabbed his wrists. Even drunk, he was still taller and stronger than her. They struggled and both fell off the table, hands still locked. Kohaku managed to take control and roll Rin on her back with him on top of her. He smiled down at her, he was having fun. Rin's face was sour as she struggled beneath him. 

"You're so pretty Rin." Kohaku moved in close and softly kissed Rins lips.

Rin's face went red. She'd never been kissed before. She didn't want it like this. At a brothel! In front of people. Kohaku was drunk and they had to leave. "No!" Rin mumbled and struggled against him. She didn't realize she was doing it but her Meido necklace began to glow, then shot out towards Kohaku.

Kohaku flew across the room. Everyone froze, startled. Rin sat up and looked around making sure no one was seriously injured. She got to her feet and brushed herself off, walking over to Kohaku.

Kohaku looked up at Rin from the ground, confused. 

"We're leaving. Now." Rin pointed her Kaiken at him and he held up his hands in surrender. 

The other two exterminators followed Rin and Kohaku as they trudged back to Camp. The men were silent, and Rin was grinding her teeth. 

Dosan met them at the gate and looked over the sad broken state the men were in. "What did you do to them?" He laughed and pat Kohaku on the back. "Well done Rin. We'll have to send you over there every time."

"No, please don't." It was only mid-afternoon but Rin felt exhausted from the mornings shenanigans. A part of her wished there was a normal hot spring around so she could go sink in it. 

\--------------------

At dawn the next day, the exterminators got up for a quick breakfast and gathered just inside the gate. Thirty one exterminators were lined up before Kohaku and the three other leaders. The number was probably a bit excessive, but It was a good exercize to get them all out on this mission, and it was a Rat problem after all. 

Kohaku had the look of a determined man. He breathed out slowly in the crisp early morning air. The large number he gathered was partially because he was contemplating leaving a few exterminators behind to set up a small camp in the area. He thought about maybe sending a few to make a branch in the North as well.He was standing up straight and overseeing his exterminators, but Rin could tell he was wavering a bit, hungover from the night before. 

Rin shook her head slightly at the sight of Kohaku, she was learning so much about him in a short time. Otsuya was not in the hut when Rin woke up this morning, but pranced out of Kohaku's hut after getting him up and ready. Rin hadn't noticed these things before. Or if she saw them, she only thought innocent thoughts. How foolish. Her world was suddenly changing, or rather, her perspective on the world was changing. 

The group set off at a steady marching pace. It would take them at least 3 days to get to their destination, maybe even 4. They had a few horses carrying blankets and food, but no carts since they'd be trekking through mountains and rocky terrain. They would have to fish and forage for most of their food, which Rin was put in charge of since she had ample foraging experience. 

The days and nights were mostly uneventful. They would run into some small Yokai here and there, but with a team of 35 exterminators, no Yokai stood a chance. They mostly avoided villages to steer clear of conflict with any bandits or Samurai. However, the large group of exterminators was hard to miss. A band of Samurai tracked them, and tried to recruit a handful of the exterminators, but they were loyal to Kohaku. The leader of the Samurai band wanted to attack in retribution, but their force was smaller than Kohaku's, so they left. 

They walked from sunrise to sunset, even longer some days just to find what Dosan called an optimum spot to settle for the night. They mostly walked, but if morale started lagging, Kohaku would pick up the pace to a jog. He had Kirara put some logs in the pathway on occasion as well to make them jump over or crawl under it. Anything to keep the team alert and agile. 

For the most part, their journey was silent. The exterminators all kept to themselves, silently marching in deep thought. Kohaku kept away from Rin and all the women in general. Rin was too embarrassed to be near Kohaku anyway, but after the first day she blocked out the brothel memories, mentally deciding they would be friends again. There was tension between Otsuya and Suzuna as well. Rin did her best to ignore this and enjoy herself. 

Rin thrived. She had missed wandering across the country. She didn't realize how much until a couple of hours into the trek. Her feet seemed to remember the rhythm, her peripheral vision caught every stone in her path, every twig, every leaf floating down from the tree tops. The smells, sounds, and sights of the forest delighted her. Even at night, sleeping in the woods just felt like home. She smiled often and wondered how Sesshomaru and Jaken were doing. 

They crossed an endless amount of hills and mountains, dipping into countless glens and valleys. The often dense forests clawed at them, the dirt and mud tried to envelop them. They would come across the occasional rocky outcrop, grassy pasture or farmers field. There was no leisure time for bathing, but they would all just submerge themselves in any water they came across and air dry along the way.

They passed by one mountain with jagged, blade-like rocks at the top. They passed by another mountain that was smoking from the volcanic activity going on far below it's surface. Crossing a high peak one morning, they were even above the clouds. The clouds pooled like pillows below that everyone wished they could sink into, but they dissolved as they walked closer.

On the third night they found a remote Onsen. Their group was too big to all stay in the small place so they camped a short distance away. Kohaku and the other three leaders did stay at the Onsen, but took care of their team, buying all the food the Onsen had to offer so they could be well fed for the next days mission. Sometimes even a small amount of warm rice and a little fish cooked over the fire can do wonders for the spirit. 

There was a light, cold, sloppy rain just before sunrise, but it stopped as they were getting up. It was cold, but no one complained, adrenaline was now heating their veins. Rin shook off the excess water and prepared herself. She had a bow and Yebira full of arrows, a Kaiken strapped to her thigh, and a Naginata in hand. She dipped her fingers in a cut she pricked on her arm and smeared two stripes on each side of her face. 

The exterminators were put into five groups, the bulk following Kohaku, Dosan, Hidekatsu or Kamikura. A small team, led by Suzuna, went first, making a wide circle to cross the river and sneakily approach the small village of Gokayama. The four main groups fanned out and waited well above the tree line. The plan was to run across the river and attack when Suzuna gave the signal, but the sound she trumpeted from her Horagai was different than the fierce battle cry they were waiting for. 

Kohaku went to the tree line and saw the village they had come to help. The village was a fair size, the uniquely thatched roof huts dotted all up and down the river. Most were charcoaled if not burnt down. There were no screams or cries for help, there was only the sound of small gnawing teeth. Rats, the size of small dogs were rummaging about. Black fuzzy things with multiple beady eyes and whip tails were chewing on dead bodies, old food, and leftover structures. 

Suzuna was standing on top of one of the few huts that was still mostly erect. She casually waved the exterminators over. The rats didn't seem to notice her or didn't care about her presence. Perhaps these Yokai weren't so smart. 

The exterminators began crossing the river slowly, keeping their eyes on the rats, who seemed otherwise distracted. Even when Kohaku and a handful of others emerged on the grass, the rats didn't take notice. Kohaku walked up to a few and nudged one with his foot. It made a low hissing sound but continued eating it's prize. Kohaku decided to give it a swifter kick. The rat rolled over, wiggled, righted itself and stared at Kohaku sniffing. When it realized it was dealing with a human and not another Rat it let out an ear piercing screech.

Suddenly, all the other Rat Yokai took notice. They all began screeching. The Rat he kicked, launched itself at Kohaku. He easily cut it with the blade of his Kusarigama. Two more jumped at him. All the rats were now in a frenzy. Out of nowhere there were hundreds of them, screeching and attacking.

The exterminators were trained for this and ran out of the water to deal with the pests. Rin, Tomiko, and a few other archers stayed in the water feverishly shooting at their prey. On land, all sharp blades were out, hacking away. The Rat Yokai were easy enough to kill, but the swarm was bulky. Small sharp teeth bit into many of the exterminators. 

When they ran out of arrows, Rin and the other archers sprinted out of the water to aid their comrades. The long Naginata was a bit awkward for Rin with such a close target so she favoured her Kaiken, repeatedly stabbing into the backs of the creatures. The much taller Kamikura was still able to use his three pronged Yari and was handling it like a farmers scythe, sweeping away the vermin. The two ended up back to back during the slaughter, both relatively enjoying themselves.

Otsuya was also having fun. She was whipping Kunai and Shuriken all over the place, and using two Tantō to chop her way through the swarm. Kohaku and Dosan had their Kusarigama's swaying while everyone else was stabbing away.

In a short amount of time, the exterminators killed all the Rat Yokai in the village. But they did not celebrate. A few Yokai scurried away up and down the river. The heavy trail of many rat prints also went in both directions. There were more Yokai up or down river. Probably much more. 

Kohaku brushed the sweat from his brow and assessed his team. They were all panting a bit, but the work hadn't been too tough, just tiring from the amount they each had to kill. But he knew that all swarms of rats usually had a piper leading them. They had to find and kill the rest of the Rat Yokai, but more importantly they had to find and kill whoever was in charge of them.

"Kamikura. Hidekatsu." Kohaku called over two of his leaders. "Gather small teams and head up and down the river, then report back. Take Serina and her sister with you." 

The men nodded and began picking a few exterminators for their scouting parties. Kamikura picked Serina, Rin and a few others. 

They headed in the direction of the Horse along the river.Another village was said to be about an hours walk away. Kamikura had point and set the pace at a light jog with the others following. Serina jumped through the tees like a shadow monkey, keeping an eye out for anything unusual along the way.

The next village had the same high roofed thatched houses as Gokayama, but only a handful of them. They had a large Buddhist shrine and temple, and chanting could still be heard coming from inside. There were dead monks, farmers and raichō birds being chewed on by a dozen Rat Yokai. 

The Yokai made their screeching noise as the exterminators began whacking at them. There weren't as many as at Gokayama, so the smaller team could handle them. 

Smoke bombs went off in the woods surrounding the small village and a few stray Rat Yokai came running out to the slaughter. Serina appeared after them wearing a mask. She had one by the tail, her arm stretched out as far as she could. She tossed it towards Kamikura then visibly shivered, clearly she was not a fan of rats. 

Kamikura sliced the Yokai in half with a chuckle then continued jabbing the few around him. 

Rin was getting bored of this, but kept on poking holes in the fuzzy things. When there were only a couple left, she went up to the temple to let out the Monks. 

Kamikura had to come help her break down the door. It had wood hammered in place on the outside and the inside to protect the monks inside. When they broke in, the Monks continued chanting. 

"The Rats are gone." Rin said, but the monks didn't stop chanting. She walked in front of one and waved her hand. They were too deep in meditation to notice her. Kamikura went to tap one on the shoulder but Rin stopped him. She shook her head, you shouldn't disturb a chanting Monk. They left the Monks to their chanting, they'd figure it out at some point.

"Are they alright?" Serina asked.

"Yes, but they're....chanting. Should we clean up for them?" Rin looked over the small village, dead bodies strewn about. 

A golden eagle passed overhead. Instead of a raichō, it had a Rat Yokai in its talons. It was heading towards a smoking Mount Hakusan. They decided this was a bad sign.

Serina headed back to Gokayama to update Kohaku, while the others took an hour to bury the human bodies and drag the animal and Yokai ones out of the village. 

When Kamikura's group returned to Gokayama, the village had been cleaned up and some for the Exterminators were resting in the leftover huts. The team that had gone up the river had returned long before with news that the Rat Yokai had mostly come from Toyama Bay and the main hoard was probably still up that way. They came across even less Yokai than the group that traveled down river and a few Rats escaped, heading back to their mischief. 

Kohaku roused his exterminators and they all headed up the Shō river, ironically, in the direction of the Rat. 

\---------------------------

They passed several ruined villages on the way up the river. The Rat Yokai had decimated farming villages and shrines. The worst part was that unlike most Yokai, they were just biting to kill and not eating their victims. Countless rotting corpses lined the river.

They stopped at a shrine a short distance from Toyama Bay. Kohaku and the Ninjas of the group went on ahead to scout out the situation and returned swiftly. Kohaku then had a short pow-wow with his leaders while the team rested. It was night now and the exterminators were tired from the long hike. It had been much easier than their journey across the Country since it was reasonably flat following the river, but it had still been 9 hours of walking. However, Kohaku had confidence in his team to jump into a battle if needed. 

Eventually Kohaku and the leaders came back to rouse the exterminators. "There's at least a thousand Rat Yokai in the Bay. Their Piper is a strong looking Yokai, he's...hovering above the Bay. There's many ships in the Bay. Some are on fire, some appear perfectly fine. I don't know if they are aligned with the Yokai or not. Maybe they're the next target. We'll have to figure it out once we start attacking." Kohaku looked over his exterminators. "We were debating attacking now or letting you all rest and going in in the morning. But, there are still civilians over there. We can hear them. If we wait until morning, they will be dead. Not only is our job to exterminate Yokai, but more importantly it is to save Human lives." His team was all nodding. They were with him. 

They split up into 4 groups and everyone was instructed to only attack the Rat Yokai. Kohaku, Dosan, Kamikura, and Hidekatsu were going to take on the leader themselves. No one else was to try, unless they were attacked themselves or asked to aid. The archers were low on arrows, but had retrieved some before they left Gokayama and fixed them up during the hike. If needed as a distraction, they were to shoot the lead Yokai. However, knowledge of how fast he was or how fierce were not yet known. They spread out along the Bay but stayed relatively close together since the Bay was massive and they didn't want to be too spread in case they needed to work together.

Toyama Bay was normally a bustling place. Trading ships and black sailed Wako ships were constantly going in and out. The market and store houses were always lively. The many huts had permanent and temporary residents, and the Onsens and brothels were always near capacity. That was not the picture they saw today. Buildings, huts, and ships were on fire. Screams and moans of pan could be heard everywhere. The stench was almost unbearable.

Rat Yokai were chewing on everything, while a male humanoid Yokai gracefully danced far above the Bay, as if he were a conductor and the Rats were his instruments of chaos. The Yokai had short dark red hair and red eyes. He was wearing a long black Mofuku Kimono with red trim and matching black Hakama. His obi was a pale gray like his skin. Even though he was moving beautifully, he was terrifying to look at. 

The exterminators quickly went to work attacking the Rats. Screeches ensued and their Piper took notice. 

Kohaku flew up on Kirara towards the Yokai Leader and swung his Kusarigama. The Yokai casually dodged Kohaku's attack, and the surprise Yari Kamikura threw from aside. 

The Yokai looked down at his Rats being killed by a band of humans. He pulled his bright red lips into a slight grin and faced Kohaku, his red eyes piercing into him. "Humans are so rude. No introduction, just attack."

"Stop your Rats." Kohaku demanded. "Leave this place or we'll kill you all." Kohaku began winding up his Kusarigama.

The man laughed. "You're cheating." He crossed and flicked his arms.

Kirara growled and winced in pain then began to fall from the sky. 

"Kirara!" Kohaku grabbed on tight to Kiraras fur to keep from falling off the descending cat. They fell into the water together and Kirara transformed into her smaller self, unconscious. Kohaku emerged from the water and pulled Kirara and himself to shore. 

Rin and Otsuya were teamed up with their Kaikens and Tantōs, whacking at the large Rat Yokai. The Rats were swarming and nipping. It was exhausting work for the already weary exterminators.

When Rin was bitten on her ankle, she remembered her Meido pearl necklace. After stabbing the offending Rat, she jumped on a rock to give herself a moment to collect her thoughts and concentrate on making her barrier. She turned her little glow into a body sized barrier then jumped into a pile of Rats. They scattered upon impact with her barrier. The one beneath her squished to death. When they came too close to her, they were repelled back and unable to bite her, but she was still able to reach them with the edge of her Kaiken.

Otsuya noticed. "What! How are you doing that?"

Some of the other exterminators noticed as well. Rin hadn't fully used her Meido powers in front of them before. She wasn't exactly trying to hide this gift she'd been given, but she didn't want to flaunt it either. She'd only used it a handful of times and in small bursts. This would be the first real battle test.

"Can I get in there?" Otsuya asked, reaching a hand towards the shiny bubble like shell of Rins barrier.

Rin took a quick step back. "I don't want to hurt you. And I haven't learned how to grow it much bigger than this. I don't think we should try right now." Rin kicked at a Rat near her feet. Her barrier assisted and the Rat was projected into the sky, arching over the Bay.

The red haired Yokai leader directed his attention from the emerging Kohaku over to Rin. 

"Ash" The voice in Rins pearl told her. "He is a Vampire. Be careful."

Rin looked up at the Yokai above the Bay. She then noticed Kohaku coming out of the water with Kirara. "He's a Vampire." Rin said loudly, so her team and Kohaku could hear. "Ash."

"A Vampire?" Kohaku looked at Rin. "Have you seen him before?" He was a few Ken down the Bay from her, swiping at Rats.

"No, I just....know." Rin didn't mind Kohaku and her friends learning about the barrier from her Meido Pearl necklace, but telling them about a voice inside of it would probably be too much. 

Rin suddenly began floating up towards the Vampire Yokai. Was this a new power of her Meido? Was the voice doing this? She was at least 50 Ken high, a few Sahku in front of the Vampire. 

"You smell familiar." Ash said, his red eyes searched over her for a clue.

"I don't know you, but we will kill you!" Rin tried subtly flexing her arms and legs in different ways to try to control her floating, but nothing was working.

"What are you?" Ash moved in, very close to Rin, sniffing the air around her. He touched the barrier and was zapped. It didn't seem to truly hurt him, but it was keeping them apart for now.

"My name is Rin." She took out her Kaiken and made a move forward to stab the Vampire. 

Ash easily moved out of the way. "Your humans can not harm me." He let out a laugh. "You, I'm not sure of yet. You smell of death. And InuYokai." 

"We will kill you. And your Rats!" Rin made another move towards Ash. 

The Yokai easily dodged again then made a gesture with his hand. Rin began to fall. "You can have the Rats." He shouted to her as she began to plummet. 

The Vampire had been controlling her movement the whole time. As she was falling, Rin wondered if the barrier would protect her from natural harm, like crashing into the Bay or a ship below. 

Luckily, as usual when falling to her death, a glowing light caught her. The impact knocked the wind out of her, but she regained herself when her feet promptly touched solid ground. 

"Lord Sesshomaru." Ash said cooly, his voice loud, carrying across the water. "My dear friend, how long has it been?" Ash floated down to the surface of the water, his toes brimming the surface. However, he stayed far away from the shore.

After assuring Rin was set safely on the ground, Sesshomaru turned to Ash. "We are not friends." He said matter-of-factly, then hovered his way across the waters surface towards to Ash.

"Hey." Kamikura was beside Rin, a Rat stuck on the trident of his upturned Yari. 

Rin jumped, startled by his presence, and her barrier dissolved. It had still been activated when she was falling and when Sesshomaru caught her, but it didn't seem to have affected him. She didn't have a chance to say thank you or even Hello to her Lord yet. She took her eyes off the departing Sesshomaru to look over at Kamikura.

"Are you alright?" Kamikura was concerned, and put a hand on Rins shoulder.

Rin shivered at the contact and weight of his muscular hand. She was tired. "Yes." She looked around to her fellow exterminators. They were all still going strong, stabbing, jabbing, spearing, and slashing at the Rat Yokai. There were still so many.

"How are you doing that barrier thing?" Kamikura let go of Rin to quickly stab a Rat behind her.

"My necklace." She clutched it with her hand as she turned around to see the rat squirming at the end of Kamikura's Yari.

"Well, you better start it up again. We're not quite through." Kamikura shook off the two Rats on his weapon, and went for another one. "I've got your back." He winked at her as he leapt onto a Rat.

Rin smiled but sighed internally. She was doing so well earlier, fighting independently. But then Sesshomaru had to come save her from falling. Now Kamikura was at her back. Would she always need men to help her? However, she realized she was always fighting alongside someone, it was all team work in the end. And she was grateful to have so many people looking out for her. Like Kagome had told her, even if she became a great fighter, battling alongside Sesshomaru, she would still need his help sometimes.

Rin took a deep breath and activated her barrier once again. She grew it to her size with ease now. She looked out at the Bay where Sesshomaru and Ash were quietly talking and wished she could hear what they were saying. She hoped Sesshomaru was talking to the Vampire Yokai on the side of the Exterminators, telling him to leave, and not being persuaded to help kill all the humans instead. Rin didn't think anyone could talk Sesshomaru into doing anything he didn't want to do, but Ash had said they were friends, and that worried Rin. She didn't believe Sesshomaru was the kind of DaiYokai to kill any of her fellow exterminators unprovoked, but they were currently killing all the Rat minions of Ash.

Rin shook her head and went back to work exterminating. She could hear two fellow exterminators in the distance counting as they killed, probably turning this into a competitive game. Rin smiled, wondering what number she was on and stabbed another Rat.

"Lord Sesshomaru" Ash said sweetly, as Sesshomaru hovered close to him.

Sesshomaru squinted his eyes at the Vampire Yokai. "What are you doing here Ash?"

"Oh, does this area belong to you?" Ash asked sarcastically. "Maybe I missed you." He smiled. "It has been a few centuries since we last met. The Han's are boring and busy killing each other. I figured I would come see what was going on over here." Ash floated to the side a bit so he could see around Sesshomaru to what was going on on land with his Rats. "Is that girl yours?" He inquired, nodding towards Rin. "She smells like you. And Death. Did you resurrect a long lost pet?"

Sesshomaru moved between Ash and his view of Rin. "She is none of your concern." He said flatly.

"You know I enjoy my curiosities Sesshomaru. And she has me very curious." There was a tone of warning in Ash's voice. He floated to the side again.

Sesshomaru made an internal decision. "That team of Humans belong to me. They get rid of the pathetic Yokai that I do not wish to waste my time on."

Ash let the insult of his Rat hoard slide. "I thought you had an Imp for that. Times certainly change." He sighed and shook his head. "I never figured Sesshomaru to care for a bunch of Humans."

Sesshomaru scoffed. "I do not care for them."

"Oh good. You don't mind that I eat one then? Watching all my Rats get killed is making me sad. When I'm sad, I eat." Ash grinned, revealing one of his deadly fangs.

"After you eat, leave this land." Sesshomaru said stoically. 

"Leave?" Ash raised an eyebrow.

"The humans here are the same as on the Continent; warring with each other. I have been killing all the powerful Yokai. My Humans have been killing all the lesser. There is nothing here for you."

"It's all for Lord Sesshomaru then is it? How greedy of you." Ash folded his arms. 

"I have my island, you have your Hans." Sesshomaru added some edge to his tone to get the point across. 

"The coast of the Continent is getting crowded with powerful Yokai these days." Ash shrugged in a bored fashion. 

"So is this Bay." Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes again.

Ash's red eyes began to glow slightly, hinting to his intention. He quickly pulled his hands from under his arms and revealed two Kunai that he whipped at Sesshomaru. 

Sesshomaru allowed the Kunai to impact him. One bounced off a spike of his armor, the other pierced through just under his ribs. He pulled it out, annoyed, but was not effected by the impact. 

Ash was grinning wickedly at him, and Sesshomaru realized it was because there was poison dripping from the blade. Sesshomaru still wasn't fazed and tossed the Kunai into the sea. He'd encountered Ash's poison before, it didn't affect him then, and the recipe didn't seem to have changed much.

Sesshomaru swiftly moved forward and grabbed Ash by the neck, lifting him slightly. 

Ash's face soured as he rolled his eyes, his gaze landing on Rin. "Alright fine. Give me the girl and I'll go."

Sesshomaru growled slightly and began to squeeze Ash's neck. Sesshomaru proved to be stronger than Ash the last time they saw each other and engaged in friendly combat. He could tell Ash hadn't improved much since then. Ash knew it too and didn't struggle against Sesshomaru's claws.

"Okay fine." Ash chocked through Sesshomaru's grasp. "Let me go to my ship. My Wako's and I will go play somewhere else." He gestured towards a big black sailed vessel in the Bay. One of the few that wasn't decimated. 

Sesshomaru loosened his grip then made a toss motion and let Ash go. 

Ash drifted over to his ship with Sesshomaru following. There was no trust between the two of them. They both looked over to the land. Most of the Rat screeching was dying down now. The humans were scattered across the bay, taking out the Yokai. Ash contemplated darting towards a random Human and making a zig-zag towards Rin. But let the idea go for now and landed on his ship, instructing his humans to sail out. 

"One hundred and two!" Otsuya landed on a Rat Yokai's back, her Tantō submerged in it's head. She was laughing hysterically. 

An arrow flew into the head of a Rat running towards Otsuya. "One twenty four." Akiko, the youngest of the exterminator women boasted.

Rin stabbed at a Rat that was dazed from hitting her barrier. She had no idea what number she was on, but was happy there was only a handful left. She looked out at the water as she cleaned her blade against her thigh. Since Sesshomaru arrived, all the Exterminators focused on the Rats, including Kohaku. Now that things were winding down she wondered how Sesshomaru was doing.

It had been quiet out on the water. Rin could see Sesshomaru and Ash flying about a large ship that was slowly sailing out of the Bay. Rin was grateful Ash was leaving, but sad Sesshomaru was leaving as well.

The majority of Humans Rin and the other Exterminators found were long dead. A few still lived, having barricaded themselves in the sturdy storage huts. One human suggested there would be some survivors in the nearby Toyama Castle by the Jinzū River, so Kohaku and the group headed that way once all the Rats were killed. The exterminators were too tired to clean up the Bay right now and needed a place to sleep. What better place to house them all than a castle?

They followed along the Bay, a small amount of luminescent blue firefly squid lighting the way. Rin looked out at the boats in the bay, finally having a moment to really take in her surroundings. She'd never seen big ships before, let alone one's with big black sails. 

"Wako ships." Kamikura jogged up beside Rin. The Exterminators were all feeling their exhaustion now as they slowly marched to the castle in hopes of a sheltered place to rest. Kamikura seemed to still be in an energetic mood. 

"Wako?" Rin inquired.

"They raid the Continent and islands. Stealing, trading, attacking. All along the coasts. My Brother was sent with the army to defend the Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine, but turned Wako along the way." He shook his head at the memories. 

They sounded a lot like bandits to Rin. Bandits on the sea. She hoped they wouldn't run into any. Most of the ships were sinking now. The few that were alright were leaving with Ash and Sesshomaru. Would Wako align with Yokai? She didn't want to ask Kamikura.

The Exterminators followed the Jinzu river a short distance from the Bay to the castle, killing a couple leftover Rat Yokai along the way. The castle had been mostly emptied of its regular inhabitants before Ash and his Rat Yokai had arrived. A few leftover staff and locals had barricaded themselves inside. They didn't like the idea of the dirty roughed up exterminators coming in, but Kohaku gave them little choice. The staff fed them rice and they all crashed in the main room for the rest of the night and well into the morning.

The next day Kohaku asked Rin about what had happened with Ash and Sesshomaru, but she honestly had no idea. Sesshomaru wasn't outside the castle or by the Bay when they arrived, so they still had no answer. They were just happy Ash was gone and the Rats were dead. Everyone also wanted to ask Rin about her barrier, but cleaning up dead Yokai and humans took precedence, and then the subject was forgotten

\--------------------------

Five days later the exterminators arrived home to their Camp. They trudged back even more silently than their outward journey. Energy picked up upon arrival as everyone was happy to be safely home. The residents who had been left behind quickly went to work preparing food and water for the weary exterminators. They began taking turns bathing in the bathing barrel and changed into clean dry clothes. Weapons were stockpiled to be cleaned and repaired the next day. Saké was passed around as the day turned into evening and the team could finally relax and reminisce about a job well done.

"I'm proud of you all." Kohaku raised his cup in a toast, gaining everyone's attention. No one was drunk yet, but they were tipsy, cheering between sentences. "We fought hard. We killed a lot of Yoaki. We lost three of ours to the Rats, but I'd say we killed at least three thousand of theirs! I appreciate you all." He took a sip from his cup, but it had been emptied from waving his hand around while talking. Otsuya brought him some more and sat in his lap.

Rin saw Suzuna smash her sake cup and walk towards the huts. Rin rolled her eyes and began walking the other way, not wanting to join in the festivities or have to calm down Suzuna. Since mostly everyone was now at the party, Rin decided it was the best time to finally take a bath. She hadn't wanted to be there when everyone was taking turns and scrubbing in the same water. She went over to the bathing barrel set up behind the storage hut. She lit the fire below and began changing out the water.

The smart thing to do was wait and slowly edge yourself in, but Rin had waited all day for this and a part of her enjoyed the fiery sensation. She plunged her whole body into the large barrel. Hot water surrounded her and turned her skin red. Rin shuddered at the feeling of heat embracing her whole body. It felt good to let the steam carry all her cares away.

Rin was leaning her shoulders back against the edge of the barrel starring up at the stars when she heard footsteps approaching behind her. 

She perked up her ears, listening to the steps; calm but with a big stride. When the intruder was behind her, she quickly raised her right arm backwards to strike. The assailant caught her wrist. She struck back with her left hand, the assailant caught that wrist too.

"What next?" came Sesshomaru's voice.

Rin was startled by his voice, not expecting him, but smiled. She pulled her arms forward and he released her wrists. Turning around, Rin crossing her arms over her chest and dipping a little lower in the water to hide herself. "Lord Sesshomaru! I'm so happy to see you."

"Turn around Rin." Sesshomaru instructed.

Rin turned around, realizing it was silly of her to face him while in the bath. "Yes, of course."

"Raise your arms." He commanded.

"Raise?" Rin was confused now. Sesshomaru was still right behind her. He didn't say anything else so Rin slowly uncrossed her arms and raised them up, blushing slightly. The last time they were in the water together she was just a little girl, and she wasn't naked. 

Sesshomaru grabbed her wrists again and pulled her back almost flush against him. 

She wasn't sure if it was possible, but imagined her face was now even more red than the hot water and shyness had already made her face.

"What next?" Sesshomaru asked again, his voice so close to her ear. He squeezed her wrists. "If someone grabbed you like this. Are you simply going to give up? How do you get out of this? Think Rin."

"What?" Rin was too hot and confused to think this through, but Sesshomaru wasn't letting her go as she pulled slightly at her wrists. He was testing her and she was failing. She took a deep breathe and tried to think clearly, but her mind was as foggy as the steam above her bath. 

"I could have slit your throat by now Rin." There was disappointment in his voice. He put her wrists together in his left hand, and moved his right hand to her throat, his nail gliding across.

Rin made a struggling noise then things began to clear as her survival instincts took over. She used his hold on her as leverage to quickly pull her leg out of the water and kick him in the face. Sesshomaru dodged and switched sides, moving her wrists into his other hand and his face to her left. Rin tried the move again, lifting her other leg out to hit him. Sesshomaru dodged easier this time and made a tsk sound. Rin made a grunting noise and used all her weight, pulling him downwards into the water. Sesshomaru released her before the water went too far past his elbows, he did not wish to get wet. 

Rin resurfaced with a huff and cleared her face, panting. 

"If I were a human attacker, that would have landed me in the water." Sesshomaru nearly smiled at her approvingly but she stared at him with a disgruntled expression. He respectfully kept his eyes on her face, and looked up to her hair, there was a small piece of muddy fur.

Rin put her hand on her head and felt something gooey.

"Hmm." Sesshomaru reached forward and dunked her head back in the water playfully, then let go.

Rin coughed, then laughed and wiped off her face. She watched as Sesshomaru silently moved around to the other side of the barrel. He sank down until his arms were crossed over the edge of the barrel, his head resting on his arms uncharacteristically. Rin realized he must be on his knees. His eyes closed. 

As exhausted as Rin felt, she imagined Sesshomaru must have gone even farther with that Ash Yokai. Maybe they battled out at sea. Maybe he went all the way to the Continent. She'd never seen him exhausted like this. He seemed like he was trying to be alert, but was tired. Rin waited a few moments to see if he was going to do or say anything, but he didn't. She slowly picked up her cloth and began washing herself, careful to keep her body under the water in case he opened his eyes. She was tempted to splash him or begin talking, just to ease her nervousness, but thought better of it. 

Rin took her time and mostly kept her eyes on Sesshomaru. Not because she was afraid he would peak but because she was curious about his behaviour. When she felt clean and the water was beginning to cool, she slung her washcloth over the side of the barrel. She then moved slowly towards Sesshomaru. She sank down in the water a bit so her face was level with his. She stared at his face, her eyes drifting over his shining silver hair, his purple moon, his magenta eye lids and facial markings. Rin moved a hand up to her cheeks and rubbed, making sure there was no trace of the ones she had painted on her face with blood. She wondered if they were still there when he saved her from falling, and if he noticed. She blushed as she focused on his handsome face again, starring at his lips. 

Rin recalled how Kohaku had drunkenly kissed her and wondered what it would feel like to kiss Sesshomaru's lips. 

"Are you finished?" Sesshomaru quietly asked, slightly opening his eyes.

Rin blushed and moved back, embarrassed. "Yes." She stared at the golden eyes regarding her, wondering if he was referring to her bathing or staring at his face, and praying for the former.

Sesshomaru's eyes drifted downward from her face, stopping at her necklace. He reached out his hand and gently grabbed it in his claws, pulling Rin slightly closer.

Rin began to sweat nervously being so close to him again.

"The barrier worked well for you in Toyama." He brushed the Pearl with his thumb. "And it did not deflect me." He narrowed his eyes at it, trying to see the underworld swirling around inside.

Rin nodded her head, watching his eyes. She realized he really wasn't looking at her naked body in the bath. She wasn't sure if he was being very gentlemanly or if she should be offended. He was over 900 years old, he'd probably seen his fair share of naked women. Rin wondered if Sesshomaru had even been to a brothel. Were there Yokai specific brothels? How many women had Sesshomaru laid with? Or kissed. Rin was too tired for this quick train of thought. 

"I wonder if it did not deflect me because I am Sesshomaru, or because you have control over who it does or does not shock." He thought out loud and let go of the necklace. He looked back up to Rin's face to see if she had an answer, but her face was in a stupor. "Rin."

Her eyes had drifted back down to his lips at some point and she lazily brought them back up to his golden eyes at the sound of her name. She smiled at him, then began sinking into the water, exhaustion taking control.

Sesshomaru reached into the water and pulled her out. He sat her on the steps and wrapped her in her big drying cloth.

When Rin woke up in the morning in her hut, covered in blankets, she had no memory of how she got there. She sat up clutching her blanket as it dawned on her that she was still naked and Sesshomaru must have brought her to her hut. She assumed he was long gone and fell back onto her bed mat, red faced. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> End Notes: I put these in order of occurrence, but if alphabetical would make more sense to everyone, please let me know.  
> -Go - is a very old strategy board game for two players, the aim being to surround more territory than the opponent.   
> -Gokayama is a real village. Look it up! It's a beautiful area containing small historically gorgeous thatched-roof homes within the city of Nanto in Toyama Prefecture (formally Etchu Province).  
> -An average determined person, can walk about 50k a day (10 hours) says random research I did. To walk to Gokayama from the Nagano area (which is where I've randomly decided Kohaku's camp might be located- The utsukushigahara highlands specifically) is approx 170km. At 50k/day that's 3 days and a bit.  
> -Yibera(ebira) - traditional Japanese quiver. I believe Kagome uses a Yazutsu, but I dont know if it's because she's from modern times or thats what she was given by Kaede, or RT just decided to go that route. My research indicated that Yazutsu was more for practice, Yibera were used for battle, slung over your back or attached to a horses saddle.   
> -Mount Hakusan - Volcanic Mountain in Japan, one of 'The Big Three". It was very active in the 1500s and erupted in 1548 ,1554-1556, 1579, and 1582. So it's plausible it was smoking during whatever year this story takes place.  
> -Onsen - It's like a B&B combined with a Bathhouse  
> -Horagai - Conch shells used for signaling   
> -Kaiken, Kunai, and Tantō are all types of dagger/short sword.   
> -Naginanata - Spear  
> -Yari - A straight spear with one to three blades.  
> -Kusarigama - Blade on a stick on a chain with a weight on the end. Like a sickle. Kohaku's weapon in the manga/anime.  
> -Shuriken - throwing star.   
> -Zodiac Directions: Horse/South, Rat/North, Rabbit/East, Rooster/West  
> -Raichō (thunder bird) known in Canada and the UK as a Ptarmigan, is a pheasant type of bird but coloured more like a pigeon.  
> -"Rats escaped, heading back to their mischief." A group of Rats is called a 'mischief'.   
> -Sahku - measurement foot   
> -Ken - measurement metre   
> -Kyūketsuki is Vampire in Japanese, but I wanted to keep it "vampire", I know that's going against my own pattern but....meh.  
> -Mofuku are a category of kimono for mourning; mofuku kimono, obi and accessories are characterized by their plain, solid black appearance.  
> -Wako - Pirate. Originally what the Chinese called Japanese Pirates who raided their shores, even though they were mostly Korean, then eventually mostly Chinese people.  
> -Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine - is also a real place with good history. I plan to bring the story here later.  
> Lesser known Characters:  
> -Serina & Suzuna were Ninja's who enlisted Sango's help in Episode 59.  
> -Shiori is the Bat Yokai from Chapter 214/Episode73   
> -Female OCs - Tomiko, Akiko, Kicho  
> -Male OCs - Dosan, Kamikua, Hidekatsu, Nobuhiro


	5. Heian Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A girl and her injured puppy. Some poetry just because. The answer to who is in Rin's necklace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rin is 17/18 in this chapter.  
> Japanese to English words at the bottom. Only a handful this time. :)  
> *once again this took longer to post than anticipated. I ended up spending the week writing future chapters instead because this chapter was physically a mess. I had it written in several different places, in several different tenses that took a frustrating time to edit together. I think I have it all in the same tense/voice now. if not, I'm sorry. I just kept editing and cutting and editing and cutting. Good luck dear reader and thank you.

It was still early, but Rin couldn't sleep anymore, a strange feeling woke her up. She went outside in just her juban, inhaling the morning freshness. The brisk morning air fought with the heat of the rising sun creating a fog around the village. She could barely see. She tinkled in the designated spot behind the hut, then went to the water trough to wash her face.

Rin splashed her face a few times, then froze, sensing something behind her. She recognized the feeling pulling at her. She whipped around and saw a large shadow approaching.

Sesshomaru's dog head came through the fog at Rin. A light growl was coming out from his scrapped up snout. His Yokai eyes were bloodshot red.

Rin could sense Sesshomaru's pain. She moved closer to him and the air made a clear bubble around his electric energy. He had cuts all over his canine body. Rin hugged his dog nose and could barely get her arms around the top. Sesshomaru coughed and dark red blood came out through his sharp teeth. He changed into his human form then fell to one knee.

"Lord Sesshomaru!" Rin caught him as he coughed again and fell into her. He continued sinking to the ground on his hands and knees, since Rin couldn't possibly hold him up. 

Rin frantically looked around for someone who could help her, but there was no one. It was too early. Besides, who would help her? Sesshomaru was a Yokai, he was feared and respected but not liked enough to aid when he looked dangerous like this. Maybe if she had been at Kaede's village, they would have helped, but not here. 

"I'm going to bring you into my hut." Rin stood up and assessed Sesshomaru. His beautiful white Kimono and Hakama were becoming stained with blood. She grabbed his arms and tried to pull him in the direction of her hut, but she couldn't move him on her own even a little.

Sesshomaru hissed and rolled to his side to slowly get up. Rin grabbed onto his hand to direct him. In his feral state he accidentally clawed back at her hand and hissed. Rin let out a short startled yelp but continued the walk holding onto him. At the smell of Rins blood Sesshomaru calmed down a bit and followed slowly to her hut.

Otsuya woke up to the sound of commotion inside the hut she and Rin shared, thinking Rin had tripped and fell. She saw the Yokai Lord in her hut; bloody, red eyed, with Rin in his clutches. She sprung up and grabbed her Tanto sword. 

Sesshomaru responded with a deep and threatening growl. Otsuya was terrified.

"It's ok Otsuya." Rin loosened from Sesshomaru and held out her hands to take focus and calm her friend. "He's injured. He just needs to lie down for a while." Rin and Sesshomaru walked around the central fire towards the wooden platform where Sesshomaru could safely lay down. Otsuya circled the opposite way, stepping down onto the ground and towards the doorway. Rin quickly pushed Otsuya's sleeping mat and her own blankets out of the way so Sesshomaru could collapse on her mat.

"Don't say anything to anyone. please." Rin pleaded with her friend. She didn't have a plan yet, or know if anyone would try to attack him in this state. 

Otsuya was at the door, weapon still held high. "Are you alright Rin?"

"Yes. I'm not hurt, this blood is all his." She lied, but the blood coming from her hand was minor. 

With that, Otsuya left the hut. Rin sighed in relief and hoped Otsuya wouldn't go wake-up the camp.

"Rin." Sesshomaru was on the wooden platform, Rins small mat hidden somewhere beneath him. His eyes had gone back to their normal gold, but were wide open. His facial markings were still jagged instead of smooth. 

Rin went to his side and looked down on his face. "Lord Sesshomaru." She said tenderly, she was so worried. 

Sesshomaru made eye contact with Rin and smiled a small grin. His eyes slowly narrowed then closed. 

Rin held her breath for a moment, worried he had died. But then Sesshomaru coughed and she saw him breath. Rin lit the hut fire and put a small kettle of water over it. She then grabbed her pail and left the hut to grab additional water for cleaning. 

Kohaku met her outside the hut. "What happened?" He looked over her bloodied clothes.

"I'm fine, it's Lord Sesshomaru I'm worried about." Rin kept her voice low and led Kohaku into the hut. "The only time I've seen him this badly injured was the first time I met him." She put the pail down and moved close to Sesshomaru.

Kohaku looked over the injured Sesshomaru. It was odd seeing the powerful Yokai in such a way. "I'll get some of the medical herbs, but I don't know if they'll help him. Yokai usually heal just fine on their own." He took Rins pail with him.

"Thank you Kohaku." Rin went to her pot and made some tea. She put a cup beside Sesshomaru, and sipped out of another. She sighed heavily staring at her injured Lord. She tried to remember so long ago, when she had first met him in the woods. It seemed like a past life. She had been so small, underfed, alone, with no purpose except survival. She helped wounded animals she found in the woods all the time. She related to what they were feeling; abandoned, sad, broken things. She recognized the same thing when she saw Sesshomaru. Anyone else might have seen a fearsome Yokai, but she saw a lonely broken creature who needed help. Just like today.

The first time he hadn't wanted her help, but this time, he came straight to her. She beamed with pride and was determined to do all she could for him. However, she remembered that he didn't want anything from her the first time; no food, no water. He just needed time. Time was a bit blurry for her back then, having died and all. But she figured he would need a couple of days to recover, depending on how deep his injuries went. She wondered if she should remove some of his layers to get at the wounds and clean them and blushed at the thought.

Rin put some hot water in a bowl and dipped the cloth in. She began wiping blood off of Sesshomaru.

Kohaku came back in with a Furoshiki of herbs. "You should clean yourself too. You look worse than him." Kohaku joked and grabbed the cloth out of Rin's hand, rinsed it and wiped her hands. "Rin!" He noticed her hand was bleeding.

Rin squeezed her hand, she'd forgotten. She allowed Kohaku to clean and wrap her hand. "Thank you Kohaku. I can clean the rest of me. The sun is rising, you should go start the day before anyone wonders where you are."

"It will be hard for others not to notice he's here, but I'll do my best." Kohaku offered. They both had the highest respect for Lord Sesshomaru, but not all the exterminators did. They all feared him.

Sesshomaru was a DaiYokai and the unofficial Daimyo from their region and several Western areas. Yokai and humans alike all knew who he was and stayed out of his way. He didn't tell anyone what to do or rule over them per se, but squabbles irritated him if he happened by them. He enjoyed fighting anyone that challenged him and after he won, he left a space where the Yokai, Daimyo or Shogun once stood. Most who took over the position gave fealty to Lord Sesshomaru. He never asked for anything in return, except to stay out of his way and leave him alone. 

The exterminators training at Kohaku's camp were all there because they'd lost someone to Yokai. They all wanted to kill Yokai, and some didn't believe there was a difference between good and evil Yokai. They found it difficult to have Sesshomaru wander in and out of the camp freely, but they usually knew better than to attack him. Kohaku made it clear to every new recruit that Lord Sesshomaru would come though. Same with Inuyasha and Shippo. Kohaku hoped no one would be foolish enough to try to attack Sesshomaru, it would divide the camp if they tried.

"I'm going to stay in here with him." Rin took the cloth back and used her good hand to rinse it in the bowl. "I'll make up my training later."

Kohaku nodded and silently left the hut after glancing at the still Sesshomaru one more time.

Rin looked over to Sesshomaru as she squeezed out the cloth. He was staring at her through tired eyes. "Lord Sesshomaru, you're awake." She moved over to his side.

Sesshomaru's body was stiff, but he forced himself up a bit to pull his mokomoko behind his head for comfort. He then pushed at his right arm to put his shoulder back in place. He grunted in pain, then flopped again and closed his eyes. 

"Would you like some tea my Lord?" Rin offered him the tea but he subtly nodded his head no. She put the cup down and began wiping his arm free of blood. "It's all over your armor and clothing." 

Sesshomaru kept his eyes closed but lifted his hand to begin un-tying his shoulder piece. Rin quickly moved to assist and lifted off the shoulder armour and set it aside. They awkwardly took off his chest panel and Rin yanked out his back panel. She set them all to the side and came back to him as he undid his obi and began un-stringing his waist armour panels. Rin pulled the front panels away and added them to the pile. She'd wipe them each down separately once she gathered another pail of water. She was thinking about how best to do this when she noticed Sesshomaru taking off his Kimono. He had a Nagajuban on under his Kimono, but the shirt was open without the Obi or Kimono holding it and the short sleeves were a bit bloodied and torn. Rin began to turn red. She'd never seen her Lord without a Kimono on. Even on the rare occasion when he came in the water with her and jaken, he kept his clothes on. He was toned and muscular just as she'd imagined. 

"Rin. Are you alright?" Sesshomaru's eyes were still closed but he could sense something was amiss with her. He was holding out his Kimono for her to take.

"Uh, yes." She quickly grabbed the Kimono and haphazardly folded it onto the floor.

Sesshomaru sat up with a grunt and began taking off his Sashinuki Hakama, loosening the ankle cords. Rin quickly turned her back to him, her face glowing even more red, and thought that perhaps Kohaku should have assisted with this part. Thankfully his Nagajuben was long and covered anything inappropriate. Rin took his Hakama and added it to his Kimono.

Of her own accord, she then began taking his boots off. She wanted him to be comfortable and simply thought about how she felt at the end of a day and enjoyed taking off her kimono and the boots they made her wear during training. However, just as she was pulling the boot off she realized she'd never seen Sesshomaru take his boots off either. Even in water. Maybe he liked wearing boots. Maybe he had weird feet. Dog feet? But the boot popped off, with no protest from Sesshomaru, and his feet looked normal. Or at least, not too different from Inuyasha's feet. She hadn't seen a lot of men's feet really, but Inuyasha and Rin shared a love of not wearing footwear.

With everything off that was going to be coming off, hopefully, Rin assessed Sesshomaru's wounds. He was already healing; some scars slowly seaming-up before her eyes. She rinsed her cloth again, then began dabbing off blood. She tried to concentrate and not let her thoughts wander inappropriately as she worked her way up his body. His legs were fine, his Hakama had blood on them, but only because it dripped down. He had a puncture in his torso that went through all layers. If it had gone straight through his body, it was heeling already. He had several cuts on his arms and a few on his upper chest. Nothing was bleeding anymore, so she was just cleaning him up. She got to his face and froze when she saw his eyes were on her, and he was smiling slightly out of the corner of his mouth. 

Startled, Rin dropped the cloth. "Lord Sesshomaru." 

He grabbed her hand as she picked up the cloth. "Thank you, Rin." He stared at her red cheeks. Her heart was beating so fast. He had a sudden desire to kiss her, but wouldn't dare. He knew in his heart they belonged together, that's why he wasn't shy around her. But he was a gentleman and would wait for her to be ready, if that is what she wanted. 

She nervously pulled her hand out of his and went to rinse the cloth again. "I'll...go clean your clothes."

"They are a special material, the blood should easily rinse out." Sesshomaru had told her once before when he was injured only in the arm, that his armor and clothes could regenerate themselves and self-cleaning. He wasn't sure if Rin had forgotten, or if her human training had put this idea in her head. Either way he didn't mind. He wasn't going anywhere for a while, and if Rin was happy keeping busy, he was content with that.

Rin bunched up his clothes then ran out of the hut. Thankfully there was no one around. Rin figured they must all be out running or doing a course Kohaku set up in the woods. 

Rin was grateful for the cool breeze that danced on her skin and blew through her hair. She was getting too hot in that hut. Warm feelings kept taking over. A rush of heat kept building up in her face then would run down her body, fluttering in her stomach and going even further down. 

Rin concentrated on cleaning. She dipped his Kimono in the river, and just like Sesshomaru said, the blood began to rinse right out. She was glad, she knew for her clothes the blood would have to be beat out or the item would be replaced. She then had a flashback of Jaken telling her that Sesshomaru's clothes were made of Yokai silk. Extra strong and with regenerating capabilities. A rainy walk or stroll through a river, and Sesshomaru would eventually get this out himself. But she felt happy being able to do this for him. No one likes to lie in bloody clothes.

\--------------------

The fire crackled as Rin and Sesshomaru sat in the hut in silence. Something was different. She used to be able to sit silently with Sesshomaru and Jaken for hours. Or if not silently, she'd sing or start chatting. She could sense that something was changing between them. She didn't know what to do about it. She felt so awkward and un-easy.

"Do you still write?" Sesshomaru broke the silence and gestured to a cupboard with his eyes. A small puddle of black ink stained the floor.

Rins cheeks turned rosy at the mess. "Yes, sometimes."

"You wrote me a poem once." He closed his eyes to search his memory. "Awake tonight / with loneliness, / I cannot keep myself / from longing / for the handsome moon."

"I remember." Rin said softly, smiling that he could recall her poem. "Kagome taught me about poems after I had learned the basics of writing. My handwriting was very messy then."

"You do not write anymore." Even if she did, with all the darting around from place to place during battles lately, Sesshomaru wasn't sure if the messengers would be able to find him and deliver. 

Rin's eyes glossed over with sadness. "You didn't write me back after that. I thought you didn't like it. So I stopped writing."

Sesshomaru was taken back, "I came to you as soon as I received it. I told you when we had to part ways that if you were ever lonely or anxious or in danger, you simply have to call my name and I would come to you. In your poem you were lonely, I visited straight away."

"I wasn't lonely." Rin snapped, then quickly softened. She was lonely from the moment he forced her to stay in that village, yet he never came to take her away. She did get accustomed to life there without him thanks to the chores and kind people. He was right though, she was missing him very much that night. "I was trying to describe the night. There was no moon that night, just darkness. I couldn't sleep, and wandered outside to write. Inuyasha found me. We sat in a tree all night staring up at the stars." Rin sighed. It was a moonless night, and the moon always reminded her of Sesshomaru. There had been no moon and no Sesshomaru. 

Sesshomaru hated seeing Rin sad, especially if he was the cause of it. "I enjoyed your poem immensely. I wish you would write me another."

Rin let out a light laugh. "Kagome said...you were supposed to write me one back first. She said that before the years of war started, there were years of peace. Men were known for being very good poets. Kagome guessed that because of your age, you'd probably be good at writing poems and I should practice with you." She smiled up at him.

"Human men perhaps. Yokai Wars have been waging long before human ones."

"I laughed when she said it too. But she said high born men wrote, so maybe high born Yokai like you did too."

Sesshomaru did not like the idea of being laughed at. He did know some poetry. He read a few while he was learning to write, so many centuries ago. He'd overheard a few foolish humans professing love. He thought for a moment, then thought of a decent one. "What is it about this twilight hour? Even the sound of a barely perceptible breeze, pierces the heart" Satisfied with it, he looked to Rin. 

Rin grinned, blushed and turned away from him. She couldn't stare at him and be creative. She was better with time and paper. She thought about his poem; twilight, breeze. ... "Like a ripple, that chases the slightest caress of a breeze, is that how you want me to follow you, into the night."

Sesshomaru smiled at her, proud that she could come up with something.

"Rin?" Kohaku's voice interrupted from outside the hut.

Rin wasn't sure if she was happy or upset at the sudden distraction. She nodded a bow to Sesshomaru then went outside. Kohaku kindly brought her some dinner and a hello from Otsuya. He briefly asked about Seshhomaru's health then left to continue his duties.

Back in the hut Rin put down her food by the fire and sat on the ground. "I know you don't want any rice. We have whole rabbits, or lizards...?" She still had no idea what he ate. She'd witnessed him drink water, tea and eat a small handful of berries one time.

"No. Thank you."

Rin stared at her bowl awkwardly. She learned it was rude to eat in the company of those who were not eating, unless they were your host who had already eaten. But she was hosting Sesshomaru, sort of. She looked up to the sky, searching her brain for what custom dictated in a situation like this. If an injured DaiYokai has fallen into your hut, and he doesn't eat, but you've been given food...?

"Rin."

"Yes?" She looked over to Sesshomaru, ready to give him anything he needed.

"Do you have paper and a brush? I will come up with your next poem while you eat."

Rin nodded with a smile. She opened the cupboard and got out some paper, a brush, and the refilled ink bottle. The paper was old and crinkled, the brush had a split in it, and the ink was more blue than black, but she handed it all to him anyway.

She went back to her rice and ate slowly, thinking about poems. When she finished eating, she took out Otsuya's writing equipment and began to write as well. 

They stayed up late, thinking and writing, but not sharing their poems yet. At some point, Rin fell asleep, leaning over the step of the wooden platform. 

\--------------------

Rin woke up shortly after dawn. She stretched away the uncomfortable kink of the position she'd been sleeping in and a blanket fell off her. She smiled at the thought of Sesshomaru getting up to give her a blanket. Or it may have been Kohaku checking on them again. She looked over to Sesshomaru but he wasn't there. Rin stood up in alarm. There was nowhere in the hut he could hide. She hoped he didn't leave and was only outside the hut to stretch his legs. The bed mat was rolled up to the side and two pieces of paper were where he had lain; Rin's poem and Sesshomaru's poem.

Rin's poem read "Though I go to him constantly / on the path of a dream, / never resting my feet, / in the real world / it doesn't equal a single glance." She realized it was not in her handwriting. Sesshomaru had re-written it. She didn't see her copy anywhere. She read Sesshomaru's; "The autumn night / is long only in name-/ We've done no more/ than gaze at each other / and it's already dawn." Rin clutched the poem to her chest. She felt all fluttery again, just as Kagome had told her poetry was supposed to make you feel.

Rin looked to the doorway, hoping Sesshomaru was somewhere outside and hadn't left. She didn't think he'd be healed up and ready to leave yet. It had only been one day. 

Rin stepped outside and looked around in the bright sunlight. A few exterminators were jogging by the wall. She could hear others by the fire pits chatting while having breakfast. 

Rin tried not to act panicked as she wandered around the camp searching out Sesshomaru. She could sense him, but where? She closed her eyes and concentrated. Her necklace began to faintly glow and she felt the slightest pressure on one side of the string around her neck. She opened her eyes and followed the feeling. She went outside the camp gate and into a sparse forest. Sesshomaru wasn't far, he was sitting under a tree, meditating. 

"Sesshomaru." The voice in her necklace hissed.

Sesshomaru opened his eyes in response and looked at Rin.

Rin was startled. Did Sesshomaru hear the voice? She thought only she could hear it. The necklace deactivated at Rins break in concentration and the glow and voice were gone. 

Sesshomaru was staring at the necklace as Rin came and sat in front of him.

Rin looked over Sesshomaru, back in his Kimono and Hakama. On the surface, he seemed all healed up. "How are you feeling my Lord?"

"Fine." Sesshomaru looked from Rin's face back to the necklace. "Was a voice just coming out of your Meido?"

Rin put a hand to her necklace. "Yes." She looked down at it, not sure what to say. "There's a man inside. He's very helpful." Rin smiled.

Sesshomaru was deeply frowning. He didn't like this at all. "Produce your barrier." He commanded.

Rin could see Sesshomaru was upset, just like the voice said he would be. She was hesitant, but would never deny Sesshomaru anything he asked. She closed her eyes and held the necklace out in her hands. It began to glow and expand it's aura but Rin kept it small.

Sesshomaru stared at it for a moment, then reached a hand to the necklace. Something from the Meido shot out and zapped at his fingers. He quickly retracted his hands even though it didn't hurt him that much.

"I'm sorry!" Rin quickly said and dropped the Meido glow. "I didn't ask it to do that!"

"Again." Sesshomaru pushed up his right sleeve and put his first two fingers together in concentration.

Rin created her barrier again and once again kept it small. She focused on happy thoughts this time so she wouldn't shock Sesshomaru.

Sesshomaru put the tip of his two fingers on the Meido and a rush of wind and energy began to flow and cyclone around them. Sesshomaru's face markings began to zigzag and the sclera of his eyes turned red. He let out a low grumble as he began pulling his hand away from the necklace and something followed out from the necklace. There was a boom of air then everything went still and quiet, the Meido deactivated again. 

Sesshomaru and Rin stood, looking up towards the sound of manic laughter. 

"Shishinki." Sesshomaru took an aggressive stance. He had banished the disrespectful Yokai to the netherworld with his Meido Zangetsuha before giving it up to Inuyasha. He did not expect to see him again.

"Lord Sesshomaru, how nice to see you again." Shishinki cooed. He was without his staff, but had his mask firmly in place as he stretched his arms wide, enjoying the freedom.

Sesshomaru put his hand on his sword's hilt. 

"You look surprised. Did you really think that those of us who have the power of the underworld would die in it so easily? I knew sooner or later I could find my way out. And look, your human was perfect." Shishinki floated down to the ground behind Rin and put his hands on her shoulder. "You won't attack me. Not when your Human and I have become such good friends. Right Rin?"

Rin drove her elbow backwards into Shishinki's abdomen, ducked and rolled forward towards Sesshomaru. She popped up beside her Lord and activated her barrier around her just in case.

Sesshomaru unsheathed his sword and prepared to strike.

"Nice sword. Gave in to your little brother did you?" Shishinki shook his head. "I'll see you again very soon Sesshomaru." Shishinki swirled his wrist around then floated into the air like a leaf and disappeared. 

Sesshomaru looked around and sniffed the air. The scent of decay and death was all around, blowing from and to no particular direction. Shishinki was gone. 

"I'm sorry Lord Sesshomaru. I didn't know it was him." Rin settled her necklace and stared down at it. "Could more Yokai come and go from the necklace?"

Sesshomaru looked at Rin and wiped a tear from her sad face. This wasn't her fault. He had no idea something like this could happen but assumed it was only because Shishinki was so skilled with Meido. "No. No one else should contact you."

They looked around for another moment then headed back to the camp. Sesshomaru was well enough to walk around and would probably leave later today. Rin could go back to training instead of doting over the Yokai. 

\-------------------------------

Sesshomaru could tell just by watching them train that the human, Kamikura, had caring feelings for Rin. He fought around her, but was always watching out for her or quickly glancing her way to check on her. 

When training time was over, the human stayed near Rin. He glanced at her. He sat beside her when they ate their human food. 

A hateful feeling began to bubble like bile in the pit of Sesshomaru's stomach when the human dared to put his arm around his Rin. Sesshomaru's eyes nearly turned red. They were all laughing about something, when the boy took the opportunity to put his arm around her.

Rin continued to laugh, then swatted his arm off of her in a playful manner. Sesshomaru felt relieved by her swat, but also wondered if she only did that because he was there watching. Did Rin like this human? It never crossed his mind that Rin might develop feelings for a human male.

"Lord Sesshomaru." Kohaku came over to Sesshomaru from the gathered humans. "I know you don't eat what we eat, but the kettle is heating up for tea if you want some. Rin picked the leaves herself. Or there's saké."

Sesshomaru kept his eyes on Rin and Kamikura, ignoring Kohaku's offer. His head made the slightest of nods. "Who is that, beside Rin?"

Kohaku looked over. "Kamikura? He's a good fighter isn't he! We're glad to have him."

"I do not like him." Sesshomaru responded flatly.

Kohaku's eyes widened in slight panic. "Did he offend you my Lord? I'm sorry. I can get him to apologize for whatever he did!"

Sesshomaru crossed his arms dismissively. "No need."

"I know some of the exterminators are uneasy when you're around. You are a DaiYokai after all." 

Sesshomaru didn't respond. The two of them stared at Kamikura.

After a few awkward moments, Kohaku realized Sesshomaru wasn't going to speak anymore. "I'll tell Rin to bring you some tea." Kohaku went back to his team around the fire and told Rin that Sesshomaru would also like some tea.

Rin beamed and jumped up from her spot. She pulled the kettle away from the fire and began skillfully pouring tea into several cups. Everyone was watching Rin pour, except Sesshomaru, who was watching Kamikura watch Rin. 

Rin handed out some cups, then put two on a small tray and gracefully walked over to Sesshomaru. "There's a pinch of a flower called chamomile in the tea. It's supposed to be relaxing, and helps us sleep. I hope it doesn't bother you." 

Sesshomaru picked up a cup with a subtle head bow to Rin. The chamomile did not smell pleasant to him, but he took a sip. 

"I know you don't drink many types of tea." Rin sat beside Sesshomaru and blew on her cup to cool it down.

"Not with kam-o-meal in it."

"Probably too flowery for you. You'd like my afternoon tea. It's just plain tea." Rin took a sip and made a happy "Ah" sound. 

They stared at the humans chatting away around the fire.

"Rin?" Sesshomaru suddenly felt uncharacteristically hesitant.

"Yes my Lord?" Rin was too focused on inhaling the steam from her tea to notice the small inflection in his tone.

"Are you enjoying being here?"

"Yes, I'm learning a lot." Rin looked over the camp. She recalled running around, training with different weapons, and learning new skills.

"With these humans?"

"Yes, they're nice. Some were a bit wary of me after your first visit, but we all get along now." Rin smiled over at the group of exterminators she now called friends. 

"Do you want to stay here with them?" 

Rin side-eyed Sesshomaru, not sure of his meaning. She wanted to continue training. "Kohaku thinks I'll have completed my level of training soon." 

"You could stay here forever if you wish," Sesshomaru kept his calm composure. He was nervously testing her. "With these humans. They can take care of you." It pained him to say that, but her life always had to be her choice. 

"What are you saying?" Rin turned to him, upset. "Can't I still come with you? Oh please Lord Sesshomaru, I've been training so hard for you!" Rin began to panic. Things were going so well the last two days. Was this because of Shishinki? "I've spent years with humans because you told me to. Haven't I done as you asked? Haven't I proven myself to you? Please Lord Sesshomaru don't abandon me!" Tears were suddenly free falling from her eyes.

Sesshomaru was not expecting such a response. On the one hand it made him happy, but he didn't like seeing her upset. Rin was pawing at him and crying, so he grabbed her and pulled her into an embrace. "It has always been your choice Rin. It still is. I just want you to be happy. You seem to like these humans. You can stay with them, start a family with one of them. Isn't that what humans do?" 

Rin's voice was muffled against Sesshomaru's Mokomoko but he could still hear her. "I don't care what humans do. I made my choice long ago." She pulled away from him enough so that she could look into his eyes. "I want to follow you wherever you go." Rin sniffled. The tears had stopped flowing, but her eyes were glossy. 

Sesshomaru brushed some hair out of Rins face then rested his hand on her cheek. He smiled at her with a genuine smile. It made Rin laugh and she buried her face in his Mokomoko again.

\--------------------------------

Sesshomaru felt rejuvenated by Rin's words. He cared for her more and more with each encounter, and with each distance. He was ecstatic that she still wanted to be by his side. And he was happy she didn't want to stay in Kohaku's camp and do human family things with any of those humans. Especially Kamikuma. But he still didn't want the human around, courting her and confusing her.

When Kamikura went out on night patrol, Sesshomaru watched him. Sesshomaru left Rin hours ago, but he was waiting in the sky for the right time to strike. This Kamikura wasn't a little boy who's family could be gently relocated. He was a young man, a warrior, full of pride and ego. He would need to be properly dealt with.

Sesshomaru didn't want to lower himself to sullying his blade or hands on a human himself, especially for such an un-noble cause and on someone connected to Kohaku's camp. He would have to be careful.

Kamikura was startled when Sesshomaru suddenly landed in front of him. He raised his sword, ready to strike, then lowered it slightly when he realized who it was. "Sesshomaru."

Sesshomaru inwardly scoffed at the lack of respect. "Leave this village or die." 

"What?" Kamikura was confused by the sudden proposition. 

"Will you leave this village immediately and never return?" Sesshomaru wanted to get this over with and leave.

Still slightly confused at the confrontation, Kamikura took a defensive stance. "I'm not done training. I'm making this place my home."

"Then die." Sesshomaru jumped forward and punched Kamikura in the face. He didn't necessarily intend it to, but the impact dislocated Kamikura's jaw. 

"Why?" Kamikura coughed up some blood. "I thought you didn't attack us."

"I have someone to protect." Sesshomaru walked into the tree line and used his sword to slash at some chains Kamkikura couldn't see. An enraged hog Yokai was set loose and headed straight for Kamikura. He was so surprised by these events that he was only able to erect his sword to wound one of the hogs legs before it clenched his neck in a deadly fashion. The hogs squeals drown out Kamikura's screams as it tore him apart and devoured him. Sesshomaru watched for a moment from the trees, then left as the camp began to become alert to the noise.

Perhaps what he did was wrong, but Sesshomaru didn't feel too badly about it. If anyone besides him was going to protect Rin they should at least be able to defend themselves from a surprise attack by a simple hog Yokai.

\--------------------------------

It was a crisp night, but the exterminators were running in a pack keeping warm. They received word that a band of Yokai was desecrating villages a day's march away. The band were a bunch of misfits; an ogre, a lizard, a snail, and something you might call a humanoid rabbit. 

Kohaku brought a 10 person team with a good variety of weapons to match the assorted Yokai. The loss of Kamikura a month ago was felt by everyone, so Kohaku kept the team busy to distract from the sadness. Luckily there had been plenty of Yokai activity lately to keep them occupied.

The exterminators made decent time and picked up the pace during their final approach. They stopped when they reached the top of a hill and could look down to survey the village.

The ogre was pulling bodies apart. The lizard was burning buildings. The snail was on top of a body, melting it. The rabbit humanoid was nowhere to be found. 

Kohaku split them into four groups, with Otsuya and Rin on scouting duties to find the Rabbit. 

The situation quickly changed as the exterminator's presence became known. The three Yokai sprung into a formation, banding together to face the humans. 

Kohaku's team responded, all moving together but staying fanned out. Rin and Otusya stayed back, keeping their eyes open for the Rabbit and signaling to go in opposite directions around the village. Rin quickly summoned her barrier in case of surprise attack

"Well, well." The Rabbit Yokai appeared from behind a storage hut at the edge of the small village. "More humans to play with?" He was cleaning blood off his hands with a rag. 

"I love playing with my food!" The ogre mumbled out between jagged teeth.

"I will take my leave then." Sesshomaru appeared after the Rabbit, casually from behind the hut. He stopped when he spotted Kohaku. His eyes quickly found Rin.

"Lord Sesshomaru!" Kohaku straightened his posture and lowered his weapon.

"Do you know these humans Lord Sesshomaru?" The Rabbit looked at him, questioningly. 

The corner of Sesshomaru's lips curled wickedly. "Yes." He took a few steps away from the Rabbit then leaned against a tree. "Have fun." His words were directed at Kohaku, but the Rabbit took the words for himself. 

Rin wondered what Sesshoamru was doing with such dreadful Yokai, but there would be time for such questions later. 

Kohaku and Dosan's new target was the Rabbit, who jumped high into the air and forced the two exterminators to chase him into the woods. Kohaku was happy to know Sesshomaru had faith in them, but he didn't take it lightly.

Otsuya and Rin went after the large Ogre. They both shot a few arrows into it as they ran towards him. The two women had fought together so many times they were in synch as they took out their blades and jumped at the Yokai.

Three exterminators were jabbing Naginata's at the fire breathing lizard, while the other three were figuring out how to approach and kill a giant slug Yokai.

Rustling leaves, snapping branches, and clangs of metal could be heard from the woods. Sesshomaru could tell they were just making large circles around the camp. The Rabbit wouldn't leave his troop. The Rabbit was quick and fancied himself clever, but Sesshomaru did not believe he was smart enough or strong enough to defeat Kohaku and Dosan. Especially once the other exterminators joined them if needed. Slugs were easy to kill and frankly so were lizards. 

Enough jabs to the lizard and the exterminators had him down, with only one of them getting burned on the arm. The exterminators against the slug were having a harder time, since everything they threw at it, sank into its gelatinous flesh. Eventually one of them figured an explosion would do the trick, and tossed a flaming pouch of gunpowder into its mouth. A few seconds later, the slug exploded. Goo went everywhere. 

Otsuya slipped on a wad of slug goo and was whacked in the face by the ogre. She was tossed a few Sahku away.

Rin had no time to check on her friend and carried on stabbing at the ogre. She managed to grab and climb up a swinging arm to slash her blade along the ogres throat. She jumped down behind it, smirking, thinking it would bleed out and fall over. But the Yokai turned towards her and attacked.

One of the exterminators ran to Otsuya, another began to help Rin with the ogre, while the others disappeared into the woods to hunt rabbit.

Thanks to the distraction of the other exterminator, Rin was able to climb up the ogre once more. She straddled the back of it's neck and held on tight as it began thrashing around to get Rin off.

Rin held on with all her might, trying to also get her Kaiken into position. When the ogre took a moment to get his barrings again, Rin swiftly struck. She dove her dagger as hard as she could into the ogre thick skull. 

The ogre made a quick alarming sound, then fell forward. Rin made a happy "Wooo" sound as she rode the ogre to the ground. 

Rin hadn't noticed that Sesshomaru had moved closer to the action. Whether it was to help her, catch her if she was flung off the ogre, or to help the ogre, she wasn't sure.

Rin stood up and detached her blade from the Yokai's skull. She turned to Sesshomaru, proud of herself. "I think I'm ready to rejoin you now." 

Sesshomaru ginned, "As you wish."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Juban/HadaJuban - A slip-like wrap or shirt worn as underwear.  
> -I'm assuming everyone reading this already know the words Kimono, Obi, and Hakama. Sashinuki Hakama specifically are the ballooning style of pant Sesshomaru and Inuyasha wear.  
> -Nagajuban - A long under-kimono outfit to protect the Kimono from skin....the white part you see popping out by the collar of most of their outfits.  
> -Furoshiki - traditional Japanese wrapping cloth  
> -Daimyo - Powerful ruler/lord. I was debating using Shugo instead since it's a slightly older term and also means "protector" but both are equally good. I also know there is debate about using Daimyo because it's a hereditary position and it's a very Western and non-canon thing to call Sesshomaru or his father an actual Lord or Ruler of any lands. I'm trying to avoid that, But I did it here. Sorry if you don't like it.  
> -Poems - All the poems are famous Japanese Poems taken either from Traditional Japanese Poetry or The Pillow Book by Sei Shonagon. I assume the Japanese versions are so much better, but I think the English ones sound nice too and worked well for this.  
> -Shishinki - Powerful DaiYokai from Chapter 489 + Final Act Anime: Episode 13. Original master of the Meidō Zangetsuha.  
> -Chamomile/Camomile is Kamomīrutī in Japanese but I decided to go with the most common word/spelling  
> -Sahku - measurement foot   
> -Kaiken - Long dagger/short sword, usually worn by women.


End file.
